


The Loser That Played With Fate

by AestheticallyBrewedTea



Series: Mixtapes For The Lost User [1]
Category: 7th Stand User, ジョジョの奇妙な冒険 | JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken | JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
Genre: 7th Stand User - Freeform, 7th Stand User fangame, Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Attempt at establishing characters, Attempt on power crawl, Banter, Bants, Bullying, But nothing serious yet, Canon-Typical Violence, Character Development, Comedy, Developing Friendships, Drama, Drawings later in chaps, Experimental, F/M, Friendship, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Inappropriate Humor, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Content, Multi, Non-canon add-ins, Other, Pre-Events of 7th Stand User, Reader-Insert if desired, Reader-Interactive in the future, Rediscovery, Romance, Shipteasing, Slow Burn, Suggestive Themes, Things are not what they seem, animal violence and death, light ecchi, seinen/josei elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-03
Updated: 2019-09-26
Packaged: 2019-10-21 09:09:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 26,525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17639894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AestheticallyBrewedTea/pseuds/AestheticallyBrewedTea
Summary: "It was the end of a somber life for the owner of a lonely heart, and now marks a vivacious journey for the pretty young thing."In 1987, a despondent high school student decides to take a fresh start on life, and throughout that year, she gained a mixed bag of perks. Then in the Summer of 1988, she finds herself entwined in a harrowing crusade to defeat a vampire in Egypt in order to save one's mother from dying. This journey for her so far is downright bizarre, funny, perilous, thrilling, dramatic, romantic, and heartrending. And it's all conveniently packed into a collection of cassettes courtesy of one loser who wanted to play with fate's one-sided game!10/7: Drawings are finally uploaded on Track 5.





	1. Track 1: Owner of a Lonely Heart

**Author's Note:**

> My first JJBA fanfic, and I'm happy to post it. The story is based off on the glorious fan game, 7th Stand User which was created by the talented Clayman. However, just like the tags states, things are not what they seem for this story, and the plotline will progress differently than what you go through from the game. This story has been stewing since last Summer, and while the overall process was difficult, I had and still having a lot of fun with this. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy and stay for this experimental electrifying funky ride that comes with snazzy tracks and doodles. As mentioned in the tags, there will be chapters that you can decide (like routes from a VN, and stories like Goosebumps) which will appear in the later parts of the story.
> 
> The Loser That Played With Fate Tracks 1-??  
> __________________________  
> Opening song for Chap 2-??: Break! Break! Tic! Tac! by Satelillte Young
> 
> Ending song for Chap 1-??: Here Comes That Sound Again by Love De-Luxe With Hawkshaw's Discophonia

~* **April 1, 1985*~**

A young middle school student was saying her farewells to a burgundy haired woman who was about to leave for a flight to places unknown. It was heartbreaking for the middle student. For such a long time, she had gone through so many losses, and after gaining a precious friend, she now had to experience the pain of losing one all over again.

"I'm going to miss you," She hugged her with tears in her eyes.

The adult gently pulled away from the girl's embrace, and took something out of her bag. 

"Whenever you feel alone or troubled, just listen to this," She handed the young girl her beloved walkman and inside of it was a cassette.

The young girl accepted the woman's farewell gift, and watched as her parental figure boarded on the train. Once they disappeared from her sights, she put on the headphones, and listened to the cassette as she walked out of the station. The cassette was paused in the middle of a track, but that did not stop the girl from breaking down into tears.

 **~*June 17, 1987*~**

On the rooftop of Murasaki High School, two gruff delinquents find a lone barefooted student lying on the cold hard ground. She wore a pair of yellow headphones, and she clasped her walkman close to her bosom. Her face was covered with an open beauty magazine, and scattered around her body were her belongings which consisted of a standard school bag, a pink makeup bag, a large bento box, and a worn out sketchbook. 

One of the delinquent students snickered at the scene. The way she laid on the ground, and how her belongings circled around her body looked like something from an extremely low grade bootleg occult horror movie.

"Roses are red. Violets are blue. If chivalry be not with the master. She will be serving the end of you!" They narrated out loud, and took notice of the girl's body twitching slightly which indicated that her funny bone was tickled. Seeing that he got the girl's attention, the delinquent student continued his hammy adlib.

 

"The maid from hell. Starring the handsome superbad duo of the Lucky 7s, Hisao Akahiko and Kenichi Hisaji. And the bitchin girl's next door part timer," 

"Chouko Fukuyama."

The girl stood up and yawned as she stretched her arms out to the air. She was bone-weary from the things she's been doing the last couple of nights, and her body ached from being on all fours without taking a break. But miraculously, she always had energy for her close companions.

"The Maid from Hell. Never coming to a theater," She wrapped up the fake movie monologue, and removed the magazine away from her face which left her two friends speechless.

Cakey foundation. Ridiculously bright globs of red lipstick. Overuse of eye-shadow and blush. It was truly a work of art, and it was the girl's personal masterpiece. With the help of a popular beauty magazine, she painstakingly made herself to look like a clown who was trying to land a high end modeling gig in a mime populated country of Italy. 

Chouko looked at her friends with a tired smile. "What's wrong? Has my beauty left you both speechless?" 

The three teenagers burst into a fit of laughter. Seeing they all had to stay at a hellish environment for almost seven hours straight, the sole girl of the trio decided to be the punch line for today. While she was a little hurt by the fact that her makeup skills were downright atrocious, it was nice that she and her two seniors got a good chuckle out of her own mistake.

"Oi Chouko, here," One of the rough looking boys tossed her a pair of worn out slippers, and a clean towel from their bag.

Once she wiped away her freakish makeup, she walked over to the metal fence. The school's courtyard, the neighborhood, and the city looked so small from where she stood. While this kind of sight maybe mundane to many, it somehow made her days a little brighter.

'What a nice view...' She stared at the horizon with her dull baggy mint colored eyes. She took a deep breath, and slowly slid her simple yellow headphones off. The sounds of birds chirping, and her friends talking flooded her ears. For a brief moment, everything sounded and felt normal to her. 

_Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!_

"So what's on today's menu? 

**'The tamagoyaki with bacon wrapped asparagus from yesterday's lunch was pretty rad. Mariya's birthday is coming up soon, I wonder what should I get her?'**

"Join the Slaves of Heaven. Together we'll procreate our own Heaven. You're not seriously planning to join this crazy ass cult are ya Cho-chan?"

**'The English lessons are finally paying off, but man, what the hell is going on with this flyer?'**

**'Hmm... I wonder if he likes me...'**

**'I wonder if she likes me back...'**

**'I have a feeling he's going to smoke at the roof later... I'll definitely confess to him there!'**

**'Ugh. I failed that test. My parents are going to kill me.'**

**'I hate that teacher, she is such a bitch.'**

**'That dickhead Takenouchi still owes me 10,000 yen.'**

**'These students are so annoying, but that one student is fine as hell. I wonder if I could...'**

**'God, he's such a good for nothing piece of garbage.'**

**'JOJO! JOJO! JOJO! JOJO! JOJO! JOJO!'**

**'LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME!'**

"...Bara..."

Hearing a rapid influx of voices from random people around campus, Chouko quickly put on her headphones again. She welded her eyes shut, and concentrated to the rhythmic guitar riff that was coming from her walkman in her skirt's pocket. The jarring background noise was instantly snuffed out by her mixtape.

_Move yourself, you always live your life. Never thinking of the future. Prove yourself. You are the move you make. Take your chances win or loser._

The song had simple verses, and yet it held so much weight to the teen. However, she refused to let those impactful words make an everlasting dent into her soul. She paused her walkman, and looked toward the clear blue sky above her little head. It was a shame that peaceful moment from earlier was cut short, but for her, it was better than having nothing at all.

'It's better than nothing. I have to accept that... No, I shouldn't. Not anymore...' She gripped onto the chain link fence tightly, and struggled to think of a half baked answer to soothe her woes.

"Yo Chouko, you alright over there or did the lead in the makeup got to your brain?" One of her friends called out to her teasingly, and before she faced them, she swiped away her tears with her scar riddled hands. 

"My, my. What a way to start the day..." She muttered out airily with a faint smile, and walked over to her pals.

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The Loser That Played With Fate~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

**Track 1: Owner of a Lonely Heart**

It was lunchtime for the three students, and they all ate together on top of the school's roof. Their menu for today consisted of three cans of fruit juice, a large stack of ham and cucumber sandwiches, and bunny shaped apple slices. While the drinks were brought by the boys, the meal was made by the girl. 

"Let's see..." She muttered to herself as she ate her sandwich while jotting something down in her sketchbook. Every page was chock full of drawings, and each of them had little notes which ranged from nonsensical drabble to something that was significant to her. But one page was currently being worked on, and it was a design for a pair of earrings.

The girl's whole name is, Chouko Chanel Fukuyama, but because she lived most of her life in Japan, she went solely by her first and last name. She and her family recently moved back to their old hometown in Tokyo due to her dad landing a good paying job in the fish market. At first, she was not to excited of coming back nor thrilled about studying in a metropolis full of broken memories, but after a couple of months, she’s fully convinced that she's more happier here than she ever was back in Yo-City.

'Okay... That should do,' Chouko placed the last finishing touches onto her sketch, and looked away from her drawing to see that there was a single apple slice in her bento box. 

What was the perfect way to end a simple lunch and a drawing session? A sliced piece of fruit of course. An elated smile crept on her face. Most of the time, she hated her habit of making too much food, but for this occasion, she was glad to have it. She reached over to take the misshapen apple slice, but someone else swiped it.

"Phewww, that was some good eating! Thanks for the meal, Chouko!" The sole intimidating redhead of the trio cried out with a satisfied grin. "You'll definitely make a decent wife for some hot shot in the near future. Though he'll probably pay more attention to your bod than your clownish face paint." He finished with a hearty laugh, and Chouko was instantly flustered by his back-handed compliment.

She placed her sketchbook down onto her lap. "My, my, I'm flattered that you think I'll get married, but please, cut me some slack on my makeup, jerk!" She snapped at her upperclassman, and watched in horror as he bit into the apple slice in front of her very eyes.

"H-hey! I was saving that piece!" She glared at the eighteen year old whose hair was as red as the slice of fruit he stole from her. That boy's smug smile, he knew that she would react to his remark, and she fell for it hook, line, and sinker. 

The infuriating and sometimes complicated teen goes by the name of Hisao Akahiko, and is known around the school to be not only a double junior, but also a leader of his own delinquent gang known as the, Lucky 7s. He's a childhood sweetheart of Chouko's older sister, and naturally, he befriended the little sibling in his own teasing yet brotherly way. 

"Maa-maa, don't get so worked up on an apple. Heh, you're starting to look like one right now," The redhead said calmly to his frazzled blazing red cheeked junior. He wanted to pinch those puffed up cheeks, and turn that troubled frown of hers upside down. However, he decided to do something else to get rid of it.

"Speaking of cheeks... Why do you need to put so much of that crap when you blush red naturally?" He queried which slightly startled the girl. 

"Well, you see... I just want to..." She struggled, and held onto her sketchbook tightly. She had her reasons to doll herself up, but revealing it made her incredibly bashful. 

"I just want to... You know, look pretty," She braced herself to be teased by her redheaded senior. But instead of hearing laughter or getting her cheeks pinched, she felt a simple pat on the head.

"I see… Well, you are at that age, but have you ever thought of repairing the cracks instead of dipping everything in gold?" He pressed while rubbing the girl's head sympathetically.

A small smile formed on Chouko's face. Her seventeen year old senior may have his moments of being a huge prick, but his kindness and maturity always outshined his flaws.

"I never really thought of it that way. Thanks...Anikihiko," She thanked him with a teasing nickname, and the latter brushed it off with a chuckle. 

"Heh. Like the ladies at my night job told me; less is more for the cuties, more is more for the uglies. Right Kenichi?" The redhead looked over to the stocky bleach blonde ducktail mullet student who had just finished his lunch.

The ducktail teenager nodded silently at Akahiko, and then turned his attention to the girl. "You should be more attentive to that mop of yours Cho-chan. How is anyone going to see the effort on your mug when your hair is always in the way?" He asked harshly.

Chouko winced a bit at the ducktail boy's statement. The boy may have been born with a decently shiny silver spoon in his mouth, but his delivery and tone would make the most soft-hearted gentleman and his wife faint.

The rotund boy's name is Kenichi Hisaji, and he's both Akahiko's best friend and second in command of the Lucky 7s. Just like his buddy, he too is also repeating his second year. While he did have the grades to advance to his final year of high school, his spotty record of getting into conflicts prevented this from ever happening. Despite his frankness, both his friends view him as someone who will always have their back. He became fast friends with Chouko, and both of them do their best to help their leader graduate while covering for him when he skips school. 

After hearing his words of advice, Chouko fiddled with one of her hair strands that was masking her face. "I am growing out my hair so changing hairstyles sounds good, but I'm not ready to color-" She muttered, but was instantly cut off by the ducktail senior

"Oi, it doesn't have to be anything drastic. Though to be honest, you look like you're due for a touchup," Kenichi said to her bluntly, which caused the latter to hide to hide her roots hastily with her hands, and then her sketchbook. She's extremely sensitive about her hair color, especially for the fact that she's naturally towheaded. 

"I was kidding about the touchup. My bad, " Kenichi grumbled, and slowly reached over to remove the sketchbook off the girl's head. He may be reliable for things like beating the snot out of other high school punks, squashing a roach, or a solving a difficult math equation, but teasing and brightening up the mood were his major weaknesses . In spite of this, Chouko understood the boy's intentions, and it was not only from seeing his actions, but also hearing his deepest inner thoughts.

'Tch, why is this so hard?! It should be easy like answering a math question, not bad like Akahiko's homework answers,' She heard her friend's inner thoughts through her left ear that was partially exposed. Her funny bone tickled again, but unfortunately, she couldn't laugh for fear of hurting her crush's feelings or exposing her strange ability to hear the thoughts of strangers.

Chouko straightened out her headphones to fully cover her ears. "No harm done Hisaji-kun, I was just a little spooked. Seeing that it is almost time to re-dye my head again," She reassured him with a smile, and as he returned the sketchbook to her, she felt her cheeks warming up again. Being able to feel the warmth of her senior's hands and having a good look of his hardened yet masculine face made her heart sing. 

'If only this lasted a little longer...' She wished, but time could never be manipulated for anyone's selfish desires. Someday, she'll have the courage to finally confess to her ducktail hairdo wearing senior, but for now, there were other manners that need to be dealt with first. 

"Shit, it's that time already?" Kenichi muttered as he looked at his pricy Seiko brand wrist watch. He turned his attention to Akahiko, and the latter who was about to have a smoke, stashed his carton of cigs back into his pants' pocket.

"We better jet before the bitches in heat and their sire get here," The red headed leader of the two stated sharply, but they were seconds too late. 

The group's only exit was now blocked off by a group of girls who wore the same shade of pink lipstick, had the same type of perm, and were not wearing their school uniform's scarf. Those three traits were huge red flags for the three especially for the one who had her school slippers stolen by them earlier this morning.

"Great, it's the scourge," Kenichi said sharply, and the leader of the all female set took notice of their latest victim.

A wicked smile formed across the female delinquent's glossy lips. "Well, well, if it isn't Yo-City's public bicycle, Chouko Fukuyama. Let me guess, was Prince Peasant and his fatso buddy over there giving you a maintenance check?" She asked mockingly, and majority of her cronies giggled in agreement. 

Chouko led out a tired sigh. Of all the students that always go up on the roof today, why did it have to be that particular set of punks? 

The Sukeban gang were known as the Pink Lips, who were notorious for harassing female students around campus, and coercing them into joining their ever-growing clique to do degrading things like selling dirty panties for money. Chouko is one of their current targets, and for the past three months, they did all they could to make the former's freshmen year of high school unbearable. From getting water dumped on her head when she's in the restroom to spreading rumors that she's looser than a dirty gym sock. The female set done almost everything to break the girl's will, and it's all because the latter did something extremely heinous to the leader.

'All I said was no to her when I first came to this school. That was it,' Chouko recollected as she ignored her bullies by packing up her belongings. But behind her lifeless eyes, she was seeing red. The punkish female-set can nip at her skin all they want, but insulting both her aniki and her crush was the final straw.

'Why... Why haven't I fought back?' It baffled her that she did not raise her hand at the pest like leader yet. She stared heavily at the punkish set of girls, and came to a conclusion. If she ever got into a tussle with the leader, she would likely get dog piled by the rest of her group, or worse case scenario, she would have to deal with their one friend who has the body mass of a giant silverback gorilla. Ultimately, it would be a losing battle, and just like all the other girls before her that tried to defy them, she'll assimilate with their catty group, and lose everything in the process.

Old bitter memories resurfaced in her head, and her eyes began to water. 'It's hopeless... Just like before...' A pitiful voice echoed faintly. Her lips crinkled into a frustrated frown as she gripped onto her skirt. She badly wanted to scream and wipe that irritating smile off that sukeban's face, but a dark shadow repressed her from doing so. A deep depressive frustrating pain that conditioned her to believe she deserved all of this torment. 

"A public bicycle huh?" A familiar hand suddenly perched on top of Chouko's head, and as they ruffled her hair, her headphones shifted a bit to expose her ears again. 

'I got this,' A familiar voice said coolly, and it was none other than Akahiko.

Chouko muttered out his name quietly, and watched as he walked towards the Pink Lips' leader. Fearing of what's going to happen next, she darted over to him, but was immediately thwarted by Kenichi who placed his arm in front of her. 

'I'll cover for Cho-chan, but I sure as hell hope that you know what you're doing...' She listened to his thoughts, and both of them watched silently as their friend locked eyes with the opposing gang leader. 

The Pink Lips leader Kaho Shiokawa glared heavily at the red haired boy in front of her. "Yeah, and what's it to you? Face it Hisao, a doll like Chouko is wasted on you and fatass over there," The female delinquent stated coldly to the redhead, and smiled wickedly at the aforementioned brunette. 

Kaho hoped that her tactics and the words that spewed out would finally convince the Lucky 7s leader to abandon Chouko. Unfortunately for the former, Akahiko never planned on giving her the pleasure to walk all over his girlfriend's younger sister without a fight.

"You sure got a pair to say all that and treat my soldier like some toy, Kaho. But if that's how you're going to roll with every girl you meet..." Akahiko flipped his cigarette into his mouth. Once the cigarette landed into his mouth, he shot a piercing glare at the raven haired delinquent. "Change your gang's name to something more fitting like Blue Beans," He finished his sentence with pure gusto, and was immediately welcomed with a hard right cross punch to the face. 

Everyone turned their attention to the person who initiated the punch. It was none other than Kaho’s massive and frighteningly muscular friend, Sawa Yoshimoto, who punched the Lucky 7s’ leader. Kaho gritted her teeth, and signaled some her goons to drag Sawa away from the scene. But before one of her goons could get close to their buff friend, she pushed them hard onto the ground. 

“I’m sick of this crap. Ka-chan, call me when you’re done with these pencil dicks and their useless blowup doll,” Sawa said to her leader coldly, and right before she exited the rooftop, she gave an evil eye to both Chouko and Kenichi. 

Chouko's body froze as she saw a familiar crimson liquid drip onto the pavement. Her senior. Her sister's sweetheart. Her friend. He got hurt and she just stood there like a drooling halfwit. She badly wanted to run over to him to check if he was okay, but that dark guilt-ridden shadow of hers shackled her feet onto the ground. 

'It's hopeless...' The same pitiful voice echo sweetly in her mind, but it was muffled by the sounds of the girl's sudden rapid heartbeat. 

_“Public Bicycle.”_

_“A doll like Chouko.”_

_“Useless blowup doll.”_

**"...Bara..."**

“ **”DON’T CALL ME THAT!”** ” Chouko blurted out with tears in her eyes. Her sudden outburst grabbed the attention of some of the Pink Lips members. Some of them snickered, but the freshman did not care. Her anger had overridden her feelings of shame and guilt. 

"ANIKI!" Kenichi called out to his friend, and pushed a vexed Chouko to hide behind him. He badly wanted to tackle that Sawa down, but if he did that, he would disobey his leader's orders. 'Dammit.' He cursed as he glared heavily at Kaho who had a weird toothy smile across her face. 

"W-want another one Prince Peasant? Vii vii vii vii vii~!" Kaho shook her fist with a buzzy laugh, but her moment of laughter was cut short from the fact that the red headed delinquent remained on his feet. 

Akahiko wiped away the blood that was forming in his the left corner of his mouth. "I had worse mosquito bites than that shit," He grinned cockily at Kaho, and continued to lock eyes with her.

Everyone on the roof watched as the two delinquent leaders exchanged eye contact. While the menacing aura around them scared most of the students, something about it shook Chouko to the very core. The way they spoke, moved, and glared so freely, it resonated with a part of herself that badly wanted to be free from her shackles.

'What can I do to be like them?' She stared at the two enviously, and a second later, a river of voices streamed thru her head.

'I don't want to be with them anymore!'

'Kaho and Sawa are so creepy. I hate them.'

'Why am I so weak?'

"Why didn't I say no or screamed like that girl over there?

**"...Bara..."**

'Why couldn't you?' Chouko turned her attention at the girls that were behind their pest like leader. Despite all of them looking complacent, the majority of their thoughts fully expressed how they truly felt inside. 

'It's hopeless... This is fate,' A voice from the group stated weakly, and Chouko shielded her ears with her headphones once more. The sheer thought of being tied down to a life of losing what little happiness she has was all too hideous for her to accept. But what on earth could be done to prevent those unfortunate events from ever happening to her?

"H-hey Kaho, maybe we should back off. This is Akahiko that you're dealing with," A female delinquent with a light brown perm said to her leader nervously, and the other gang member nodded.

"Y-yeah! Who knows what he and fatty might do to all of us!" The other goon stated in horror.

"Maa-maa... Are you babes really that scared of me and Kenichi? You shouldn't be," Akahiko snuck between the two female goons. Both of them shrieked, and ran behind their undaunted leader for protection. Seeing that he finally got the attention of everyone in the sukeban group, he walked back to his friends, and then dragged Chouko to the center of the roof. 

"Akahiko, what are you doing?!" Her heart felt like it was going to burst out of chest.

"Relax. You got this," He said with a wide confident grin, and he gave Chouko a strong push on the back.

She fumbled over to the center of roof. When she finally gained her footing, she found herself facing her bully, Kaho. The female delinquent shot icy daggers into her soul, and by instinct, the latter flinched.

_See yourself, you are the steps you take. You and you and that's the only way._

Chouko went bug-eyed as her walkman suddenly played the song she paused earlier. _"Shake, shake yourself. You are every move you make. So the story goes~!"_ She heard the vocalist from her cassette singing his guts out, and an odd yet familiar sensation enveloped in her heart.

**"BARABARA!"**

Swallowing thickly, she mustered a defiant glare back at Kaho. It may not have been as intense as the two older teens, but there was now a faint flicker of life in her eyes. She had no idea what Akahiko was planning nor knew of what will happen between her and the Pink Lips leader. But deep within the shadows of her soul, a voice told her that this is both an end and a new beginning for the owner of a lonely heart. 

<==To be Continued 7❀

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> During the time I was brainstorming for this story, Part 5 was announced, and that's awesome. That means Part 6 is one step closer of being greenlit, and it'll be a wonderful world to see that fully animated. Anyway, it's pretty nice to upload the prologue and the first chapter on the same day in the form of one chapter. Those two chaps were honestly the biggest hurdle for me, but I'm happy to get that out of the way now. Thanks for reading, and hope you guys stay tuned for the next track.
> 
> Trivia and notes:
> 
> -The little adlib earlier in the chapter is a reference to the English movie trailer for Dario Argento's 1977 horror movie, Suspiria. The movie is both lovely and terrifying at the same time. If you're into horror, I recommend it.
> 
> -The whole thing about dipping plates in gold is a reference to Kintsugi; the art of repairing pottery.
> 
> -Chouko has a crush on her senior, but it's complicated. 
> 
> -Those homework answers from Hisao are up there with a certain gangsta's answers to math. There might be a drawing about this later in the future.
> 
> -Jotaro is mentioned throughout this chapter. Don't worry he'll make an appearance soon.


	2. Track 2: 夢の中へ/Into a Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alright ladies and gents, there's some news coming out from Murasaki High. The newest addition to the Lucky 7s has finally stepped out of her comfort zone and seems to be interested in playing fate's game. Ain't that Loser a doll? But something so sweet and delicate can only get so far. Speaking of Loser, her recent actions remind me of something. Both the outside and inside of a person are important to be stylish. So Loser, if you truly want to play freely like the big boys and girls, then you have to dig a little deeper or go into a dream.
> 
> ****
> 
> **CLICK!** 
> 
> ****
> 
> Opening song for Chap 2-??: Break! Break! Tic! Tac! by Satelillte Young 
> 
> Ending song for Chap 1-??: Here Comes That Sound Again by Love De-Luxe With Hawkshaw's Discophonia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Featured characters so far:
> 
> Chouko Fukuyama  
> Age: 16  
> Likes: Drawing, Sewing, Reading, Aerobics, Disco, Outings (favorite hang out spots so far: The Lucky 7s’ secret spot and the arcade), Teatime, Music, Cleaning, Cooking, and Gardening.  
> Dislikes: Bugs. Being sleepy. Horror Movies (The gorefest variant). Karaoke (Really shy when it comes to singing). Smoking. Letting down others. Bullies. Losing. Herself.
> 
> Hisao Akahiko  
> Age: 17  
> Likes: Watching movies (any kind and a huge fan of Jackie Chan), Sparring, Automobiles and Motorcycles, Karaoke, Collecting and playing marbles, Racing or Fighting arcade games, Dates with Mariya, Napping, Taking out the trash (both garbage and jerks), and Reading (keeps this a secret!)  
> Dislikes: Homework and tea. His day offs or work days being interrupted by rival gangs or other outside interference. His next neighbor. Cockroaches. Violet Bubblegum. Cheaters. Kids crying. His first name.
> 
> Kenichi Hisaji  
> Age: 17  
> Likes: Pinball machines (SBR machines specifically), Rail Shooter games, Listening to Pop Idol music (cannot choose between Seiko Matsuda or Akina Nakamori), Karaoke, Horror movies, Reading books on health and medicine, working up a sweat (be it brawling, belching out his soul on the karaoke box, disco, or long runs), and taking care of his hamster, Ben.  
> Dislikes: Karaoke sessions solely with Akahiko. Study sessions or anything comfy being interrupted by punks. Summer weather (doesn’t really like losing his body mass and it makes everything sticky). Body Odor (Always have deodorant spray on hand). Oceans or huge bodies of water. Shrimp and other crustaceans. Overzealous idol fans. His butler Jetsam or his mom crying. Littering.

The last bell for the day rang throughout the campus. It was was time for everyone to leave and go about the rest of their day by either turning in for the night or party till dawn. A majority of people had already left, but some remained for reasons unknown.

“I hear that something went down between Kaho and that weird chick from 1-A." A third year student talked to his pal as they walked together to the shoe lockers.

"You mean that girl from Kazagurama Tech? Pfft, I bet you 200,000 yen that bitch is going to get into a fight with her," The guy’s friend waved a wad of 10,000 yen bills with a wide grin.

"Hehehehe, hell yeah, but which one’s the bitch?" The two third year students laughed amongst each other, and as they left, one of them threw a crumpled up test paper at a nearby garbage bin. Unfortunately, it did not land in the container. Instead, it bounced off of someone’s head.

A dainty hand picked it up and threw it into the bin. ‘It’s got to be in here…’ A barefooted Chouko rummaged through the trash bin, and right between her legs was her bag that had a rolled up magazine sticking out of the main pouch. Brushing away wrappers, ripped up flyers, and other rubbish, she found a pair of leather loafers. Both of them were covered in cigarette burns. She observed the damages and spotted a good number of lipstick stains. The lipstick was pink. Pearly pink. The same type of shade of that a certain group of harpies wore on a daily basis.

Chouko sighed and took a frilly handmade handkerchief out of her bag. She wanted to confront those pests again, but because of what had transpired on the rooftop at lunch, both her rational and regretful sides were in complete overdrive. 

__“Awww,__ __the Public Bicycle is angry. Is it because Prince Peasant and Fatty threw you out?”__

__“Sh...t...p”_ _

__“Huh?”_ _

_**_“SHUT UP!”_ ** _

SLAP!

Everyone on the roof gasped as they saw the Pink Lips leader getting slapped by a fellow female peer. The Pink Lips leader Kaho Shiokawa placed her hand on her reddened cheek. This was one of the few rare instances that someone struck her, and for the first time ever, someone so fragile looking smacked her hard across the face. 

The Pink Lips bared her teeth. “VIIIIIIIIIIIII VIIIIIIIIIIII VIIIIIIIIII YOU LITTLE BITCH!” She fumed and both girls were quickly restrained by their cohorts and friends. 

_**_**“L-let me go... I’m not through with her yet!”** _ ** _

Memories of shouting and being pulled away by Akahiko and Kenichi flashed in Chouko’s head. She felt satisfied that she stood up to her bullies. However, she felt a bit guilty of her actions which sprouted out another problem for her to handle. 

She took a deep breath and sighed softly. ‘There’s no turning back now. All I can do is wait for the big day, but dad just got me these…’ She wiped the stains off the shoes and slip them on. She headed off to the main exit, but someone collided into her body. Both of them alongside their reading materials toppled onto hallway floor.

“Owie. Owie. Ow, ow, ow,” Chouko heard a painful whimper closeby, and looked up to see who she bumped into. A few inches away from her was a chubby girl who wore her copper brown hair in a high ponytail, and donned a pair of earrings that can instantly grab the attention of any budding fashionista.

‘Those are so rad…’ Chouko admired the snazziness of the resin heart shaped piercings, but took notice of the ponytail girl’s belongings that were scattered all over the floor.

“A-ah I’m so sorry! Here, let me help you,” Chouko proceeded to pick up the magazines for the girl. Two of the magazines mainly revolved around beauty and fitness tips while the other three were about the trends on accessories, music, movies, and clothing. Piling up them up into a neat stack, she picked up the last thing off the ground. 

‘My, my, is this what I think it is?!’ Her hands trembled as she stared at the cover with excitement. In her hands was copy of the latest issue of Sweet Olivia; a popular fashion magazine for girls. For a while now, the sixteen year old has been searching for that particular item in every store, but just like the latest copy of Pink Dark Boy, it’s been sold out for weeks. So in the end, she bought a beauty magazine and some makeup.

‘Just a little peek… N-no, I can’t do that!’ Chouko desperately wanted to open the thing to read its contents, but alas, it was not hers to read. As she was about to hand back the stack of zines to its rightful owner, she was suddenly welcomed by the sound of a joyful gasp and the sights of a magazine spread that featured famous Pop Star Minako Honda.

“Oh my god! Is this the latest MonMonCherie?!” The pony tailed girl held out the magazine to the brunette with an elated smile. 

Chouko nodded silently. “The store that I went to didn’t have Sweet Olivia on stock, so I went for the next best thing instead,” She explained with a tiny smile. It was refreshing to meet a fellow female peer that not only had a chipper demeanor, but also had similar tastes in magazines.

“Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Chouko Fukuyama.”

“Names Urara. Urara Kotohime. Say… That’s a totally cute handker-.” 

Before the ponytail girl could finish her sentence, someone stomped loudly toward her. 

“Ushirara. Ka-chan is crying,” The terrifying Pink Lips deputy Sawa Yoshimoto stood behind the ponytail girl and took notice that the latter was talking to Chouko.

“If it isn’t the blowup doll, and ooh it looks like you’re making friends with a fellow classmate.” Sawa’s lips curved into a playful smirk and swiped the beauty magazine out of Urara’s hands. “Say, if you trying to score some makeup tips from the cow or this shitty magazine, how about a concrete facial? That’ll do wonders to that pretty face of yours,” She extended her beefy hand over to Chouko. The brunette backed away from her instinctively. 

Sawa broke into laughter. Seeing her female peers squirm and quiver like some frightened animal filled her with a sadistic excitement. But unfortunately for the perm delinquent, her current plaything was already fed up of her twisted bull hockey. 

“Did you forget about the deal that our leaders made? We can’t fight each other,” Chouko said, and the delinquent’s mocking laughter ceased. 

Sawa led out a cough. “O-Of course I know about the deal! Ka-chan told me everything!” She gripped onto the beauty magazine tightly which made the two freshman girls gawk in horror.

Chouko was crushed as she watched the magazine turn into an oversized paper ball. She bought that magazine with what little allowance she still had, and now it’s ruined by some musclebrain goon who obviously knew nothing about the deal nor the order that all members of each group were forbidden to not do anything rash against the opposing group before the big day. 

Chouko pursed her lips. “If... If what you say is true, then you as the Pink Lips’ deputy must know that starting a ruckus before the official game plan can tarnish your crew’s rep. I promise that I won’t tell this to my crew or the others, so please stop.” She stated firmly, and bowed slightly to the delinquent.

Sawa dropped the wadded up magazine onto the ground. As Chouko picked up the thing off the floor, the perm delinquent kicked the nearby trash can off the ground. An assortment of garbage spilled all over the hallway, and the bin cracked neatly into two. 

Chouko casted her tired eyes on Sawa, but underneath her blank expression, she was absolutely terrified. That poor trash bin broke from just one ridiculously strong kick, and that said receptacle and it’s contents could of been her and her insides. The poor lass wanted to turn both her cheeks and run away, but doing so would make her current situation worse. 

‘Run like a coward or stand and die like a coward. Either way it’ll just make me look bad.’ She laid out her choices in her head which made her want to cry. 

‘It’s hopeless… This is the fate I deserve.’ The honeyed words from that distressful voice in the girl’s head made her grip onto her skirt. 

Sawa moved closer to the troubled Chouko and loomed above her head. “For some blowup doll, you talk big. Here, let me make that mouth of yours bigger.” She said as she extended out her hand to Chouko’s face. Things were about turn gruesome for the girl, but luckily, someone stepped in by grabbing the bully’s forearm.

“Sawa! You’re here for me, not her!” The ponytail student Urara shouted at Sawa, and the latter pulled away their arm from them with a sigh.

Sawa lowered her dark brown eyes and hock a loogie at Chouko. A gross amount of mucus and saliva that smelled heavily of tobacco and over-ripened fruit splattered all over the girl’s face. 

Chouko wiped it off with her stained handkerchief and glared at her disgusting tormentor weakly.

“I have business with the cow now. So get the hell out here toy and you better not say a word about this to your dickhead friends,” The female delinquent told her roughly, and turned her their attention back to the Urara whose lips were pressed into a thin line.

Chouko followed the sukeban’s orders. As she walked away from the scene, she pressed the play button on her walkman. She hoped that the music could calm her down, but it just agitated her more. She was heavily peeved by that apeish delinquent and that leader of hers, but a small part of her couldn’t help but feel puzzled. How she warranted that much anger and resentment from those two perm punks is beyond her. The main reason cannot be solely based on her refusal to join their lousy all girls club. She wanted to know the real reason. But how on earth could she get the answer without her face getting smashed into wall or getting a one way trip to the morgue?

‘I wonder…’ She paused her walkman and turned around. She stared at the daunting Pink Lips deputy from a somewhat safe distance, and slowly shifted her headphones away from her ears. ‘Lord forgive me...’ She hated what she was about to do, but her genuine curiosity wanted to be sated. Taking a deep breath, she concentrated her willpower to dig through her bully’s mind.

‘I wonder what Professor Emiko is doing right now. I hoped she liked those flowers.’

‘I really want to go out and drink tonight, but I have these test papers to grade.’

‘Today’s dinner is katsu curry. Man, Professor Emiko’s curry is the best!’

****'JOJO! JOJO! JOJO! JOJO! JOJO! JOJO!'** **

****'LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME!'** **

Chouko winced at the loud influx of chanting voices that overshadowed everyone else’s thoughts. She hoped that prying into one’s inner mind would be easy, but in reality, it was more difficult than she imagined. ‘It was worth a try… I think,’ She placed her headphones back on, and saw that Urara had her hand laid out toward Sawa.

“Then pay me 10,000 yen,” Urara said bluntly to the delinquent who responded by slapping her hand away from their face.

“10,000 yen for your shitty jewelry?! No way Ushirara!” Sawa shouted angrily and the ponytail girl lead out a defeated sigh.

“Okay that was rude of me. Here, I’ll do you better.”

Urara laid both her hands out to Sawa with an impish smile. “I’ll do it for free if you pay me 150,000 yen. No more, no less Sawabobo~” She offered with an insulting nickname that not only ruffled the delinquent’s feathers, but also tickled someone’s funny bone.

“Pffft!” Chouko covered her mouth to repress her giggles, and right before a red-faced Sawa could spot her snickering, she was already gone. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chouko dashed out of the building, and in the distance, she spotted Akahiko and Kenichi who were waiting by the school’s main gate. As she was about to run toward them, she saw a large group of girls crowding at a nearby tree. All of them were squealing about something, but what was it that got all of their hearts fluttering? Was it a stray baby animal? No. Was it an abandoned baby? No way. Was it a budding male idol that decided to pay a visit to their high school? Fat chance. But it was someone that garnered attention of countless women that could turn even the humblest celebrity green with envy. 

“JoJo, do you want to go at the arcade? I heard there’s a fortune teller that could tell us our compatibility! We should so test it out♡,” A curly haired girl clinged onto the muscular arm of a dark haired student that stood 195 cm tall. 

“...” The dark haired student remained silent.

Another girl latches onto his other arm. “JoJo, it’s soooo dangerous to walk alone♡~! We should walk together,” A bob haired girl held his arm close to her bosoms and stared deeply into her crush’s blue eyes.

“...” The dark haired student did not respond, but each passing second he was becoming more irritated by his lovestruck groupies. 

“JoJo, Summer vacation is coming soon! Do you have any plans and are you free on Tanabata?” Another girl pounced onto his chest.

“...”

“JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.”“JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.”“JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.”“JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.”“JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.”“JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.”“JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” 

****"SHUT THE HELL UP! YOU ARE ALL SO ANNOYING!"** **

Chouko bounced off the ground like a startled cat. Even with her headphones, it didn't fully muffle out that booming gruff voice nor that irritated tone from that notorious teen delinquent heartthrob Jotaro Kujo. 

"Give me a fucking break. Don't you bitches have anything else to do?" The hot-blooded teen asked his groupies as he harshly shook his clingy fangirls off from his body. Finally getting the message that he did not want to be touched, all of them backed away. Then a split second later, they proceeded to fawn over him again. 

“KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA~ I CAN’T BELIEVE HE SAID THAT TO MEEEEEE~♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡” They squealed and swooned in utter delight as if the guy was the second coming of the King of Rock and Roll. 

Chouko tilted her head at the girls. It was boggling that the majority of the girls in this school have a fondness for that brute. Then again, she was no better than them. She has a fondness for someone too, and a good number of peers would definitely be puzzled about her affection for that ducktail double junior. 

She glanced at the irritated Jotaro. Even though she only knew him from tall tales and horror stories, she felt some empathy for the guy. However, that ounce of compassion would most likely not matter to him at all.

“Give me a fucking break. Just leave me the hell alone.” Jotaro scolded the girls, and by instinct, Chouko followed his plea.

She walked away, and did her darndest to not be noticed by them. Then out of nowhere, a huge gust of wind blew into the courtyard. Strands of her hair and the helm of her skirt played with the air. There was a chill in the breeze. But instead of feeling nice against her bare skin, it felt like a thousand knives had pierced her entire body. Her eyes began to water. Something in the atmosphere felt heavily ominous and at the same time, painfully lonely.She spun around to find the source of it, and the haphazard search lead her to the intimidating heap of muscle who was staring directly right at her. 

Chouko froze instantly. ‘Leave! Leave! I don’t want to be here!’ She fearfully begged for her legs to move, but they refused to budge. Of all the times for her fight or flight system to crap out, it chose this exact moment.

“JoJo is something wrong?” One of the fangirls asked their beloved crush.

Chouko felt her heart racing as the group of fangirls slowly turn their attention to her. She braced herself for the verbal backlash from the groupies. Then out of nowhere, someone grabbed onto her hand.

“A-ah!” She snapped out of her distress funk, and saw the two Lucky 7s member standing in front of her. 

“There you are! C’mon, the karaoke machine isn’t going to sing itself!” Akahiko shouted as both he and Kenichi guided the somewhat shell-shocked brunette away from the scornful gazes of the girls and the piercing gaze of Jotaro.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

__休むことも許されず　笑うことは止められて_ _

__You don't even let yourself sleep, and don't smile any more._ _

__はいつくばって　はいつくばって_ _

__Grovelling in the dirt, grovelling in the dirt..._ _

__一体　何を探しているのか_ _

__What in the world are you looking for?_ _

__…_ _

__探しものは何ですか　まだまだ探す気ですか_ _

__What is it you're looking for? Are you still going to search for it?_ _

__夢の中へ　夢の中へ　行ってみたいと思いませんか_ _

__Don't you want to try going into a dream, into a dream?_ _

__ウウウー　ウウウー　ウウウー　さあー_ _

__Oo Oo Oo- Oo Oo Oo- Oo Oo Oo- saa, aa..._ _

Inside of a hole in the wall eatery and bar that’s called RockinHard, there was a secret backroom that’s reserved for a certain gang of delinquents and a few former members that had moved onto greener pastures. The backroom was a bit rundown, but in some strange way, that made it more charming. The scent of tobacco and alcohol lingered in the air. The area was illuminated by the yellow lights from the ceiling and the neon colored lights from a few arcade cabinets. The walls were riddled with ripped up posters or spreads from a variety of magazines, and warm photos of crewmates. The furniture varied from an old ping pong table, a makeshift table made from a large plank of wood and crates, a torn up leather sofa, an outdated TV, a worn out punching bag and a few weights, a cabinet full of treasured junk, and a couple of rickety chairs.

The owner of the whole establishment entered the room with a tray of drinks. He walked through the sea of rowdy punks and some of them grabbed a glass or two off the platter. Some of those punks were either singing their hearts out on the karaoke machine, and others were letting off steam by via a round of pinball, beating the snot of each other, hitting on the girls they invited, or working out while their friends cheered them on to do another rep.

“Here’s ya drinks kiddos,” The owner placed down a tray of drinks onto a ping pong table of three Murasaki High students.

“Thanks Harv,” The three of them expressed their gratitude to the owner as he went to manage the front of his restaurant.

The three teens grabbed their sodas. All of them gulped down their drinks, and slammed their cups down at the same time. 

“So let’s recap…” Akahiko went back to playing a round of poker with Kenichi. He grinned at his best friend as he placed down a couple of yen coins and a 1000 yen bill onto the table. Then he looked toward Chouko who was sitting at the opposite of the table, and carefully sewing a patch onto a pair of well-worn leather fingerless gloves. 

“You took long in the shoe lockers because you wanted to sketch out a crumpled piece of paper. Then as you were about to meet us at the gate, something in the wind scared you, and that caused you to lock eyes with that Kujo bastard?” 

Chouko nodded and she forcibly curved her lips into a smile. She knew she was lying about what really happened in the shoe lockers, but she could not bring herself to tell that to her two leaders. ‘It’s my fault anyway…’ She admitted to herself and continued to smile at the two. 

“M-mhm, weird isn’t?” She responded lightly.

Kenichi narrowed his eyes at her and then to Akahiko. “Weird isn’t exactly the word that I would chose,” He replied as he placed down a 10,000 yen bill onto the table. He smirk at Akahiko. Indicating the cards that he’s currently holding might be the winning hand.

Akahiko sighed heavily and folded his cards as a sign of defeat. “Yeah, it’s more in the lines of spooky or maybe because you’re scared of...” Both boys became silent, and they lowered their eyes to the table.

“S-scared of what…?” Chouko tilted her head at the two, and was instantly started by them slamming their hands onto the table.

 ** **“SATURDAY FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHTT!”**** The two boys screamed at the top of their lungs.

The people in the room heard them screamed, and all of them yelled to the point of getting the restaurant’s owner to barge into the room to shut them up. The screams died down, and the two chuckling boys looked over to their skittish soldier.

“Anyway... You ready for Saturday?” Chouko heard her redheaded leader’s question, and saw that there was a switchblade set in front of her. 

She reviewed on the deal that both gang leaders agreed on. The deal was that there will be a match on Saturday, and tomorrow there will be a toss coin from __Lady Luck__ that will decide what kind of match it would be. This upcoming match was going to big one. Not only it will finally determine who's the top gang around town, it will also be a part of Chouko’s initiation to the Lucky 7s gang. 

She put the gloves down onto the table, and took out a packet of Violet flavored bubblegum from her blouse. She popped a small purple brick into her mouth. “To be honest, I’m a little scared. No...” She chewed her gum rapidly and seconds later, she accidentally swallowed the thing. “I-I’M SCARED OUT OF MY WITS!” She confessed with her hands clasped together and with tears in her eyes.

Both boys laid back onto their chairs as they watched their junior sobbed pathetically. 

“Well, let’s give you a couple of pointers in bopping. Starting with the basics...”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

****“Never ever close your eyes when you strike your opponent. That’s the kiss of death.”** **

****“Use magazines for the gut. The Pink Lips fight dirty. They’ll hit anything that’s vital.”** **

****“Next is fists. Make a fist like this, and have a roll of coins in each hand.”** **

****“5-yen coins to be exact.”** **

‘Rolls of 5-yen coins... ‘ Chouko laid on her futon, and stared blankly at her bedroom’s ceiling. It was two hours since she left the hideout, and went back to her family’s small apartment. Her dad and older sister were currently at work. The former was currently fishing on a boat while the latter will not be returning until evening, which left the youngest of the family to mind the place and make dinner. 

Chouko continued to gaze at her ceiling. “Rolls of 5-yen coins,” She rolled to her side. ‘Where am I going to get that? __Master__ doesn’t pay me until the end of... Saturday...’ She frowned and looked over to her writing desk. On top of it was her walkman, a photo of her family, her sketchbook, and the pair of leather gloves that she’s currently working on for Akahiko. Then on the center of the desk, there was the switchblade that said redhead had given her.

She stared heavily at the knife. __“You ready for Saturday?”__ Her leader’s voice echoed in her head, and she hopped off her futon. She headed over to her desk and reached over for the blade.

Tip Tap! Tip Tap! Tic Tac!

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

Chouko had her left hand placed down onto the desk’s surface, and swiftly maneuvered the tip of the switchblade with her right hand. It’s been ages since she ever played pinfinger, and there’s no doubt that she needed some practice. She started off to a slow pace.

Tip Tap! Tip Tap! Tic Tac!

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

 _ _“Have you ever thought of repairing the cracks instead of dipping everything in gold?”__ Memories of what happened today at school enveloped in her head. She decided to stand up against her bullies, but now she has to deal with the leader by either a good old fashioned brawl or a thrilling game of pinfinger. She prayed it was the latter.

Tip Tap! Tip Tap! Tic Tac!

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

Tip Tap! Tip Tap! Tic Tac!

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

She moved the blade faster while avoiding the chances of injuring her hand. As she heavily gazed at her scars, she realized something. Her scars and her past have a lot in common. Both of them were old and they do not fade away so easily. Memories of long ago flashed in her head as the tip of the blade tapped onto the wooden surface.

Tip Tap! Tip Tap! Tic Tac!

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

Tip Tap! Tip Tap! Tic Tac!

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!Tip Tap! Tip Tap! Tic Tac!

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

Tip Tap! Tip Tap! Tic Tac!

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

__“We’ll meet up tomorrow right?”_ _

__“Y-yeah… It’s a promise.”_ _

__‘I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I’m a horrible friend!’_ _

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

Tip Tap! Tip Tap! Tic Tac!

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

__‘It’s hopeless… this is my fate.’_ _

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

Tip Tap! Tip Tap! Tic Tac!

Tic Tac! Tic Tac! Tic Tap!

_**_**“You’re not tied to that or anything else…”** _ ** _

“Bara…”

Chouko’s eyes shot open and saw that there was a cut on her ring finger. Some people would of yelped in pain, but for her case, she only winced and felt a dull pinch. She placed the knife down, and rummaged through her desk drawer for a band aid. There she noticed a worn out cassette for a movie soundtrack. She gazed softly at the item as if it was an incentive for her to keep going while always striving to improve and wanting more.

“I need to break our promise for just a little bit. After this is done, I won’t do this anymore. I promise,” She apologized to the item and closed the drawer shut. She sat herself at her desk. Instead of playing another round of pinfinger, she continued sewing a 7 shaped patch onto a pair of fingerless gloves.

As she carefully pulled the needle through the leather, memories of her two gruff senior pals, the people at the hideout, her fellow first year peer Urara, and the barbaric Pink Lips appeared in her head. She recalled their movements and their actions towards others. All of them had some sort of free energy that made them do things without ever skipping a beat. Chouko envied that ability.

'Why am I not like them?’ She reflected on her lousy attempts to break free from her torment, and noticed that it lacked the same energy those people had. 

‘What am I doing wrong?’ She dug for answers in her head, and minutes later, she suddenly recalled her encounter with Jotaro Kujo. Him alongside her peers had a lot of things in common. They had a tenacious aura, the energy and willpower to push away people that irritated or threatened them, and their own styles to flaunt to others. 

The light bulb in Chouko’s head flashed brightly. ‘That’s it!’ She put aside the now dapper pair of gloves, put on her headphones, and placed her sketchbook down in front her. She pressed the play button on her walkman, and began to scribbling something down onto the blank piece of paper.

‘How can I be… Bad?’ 

<==To be Continued 7❀

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter done and a lot more to go. Sorry about the long delay. I was hoping to finish and upload this particular chapter along with a drawing for Valentines, but I was busy at that time. So consider this as an extremely late gift found in the deepest parts of a bargain bin from some shoddy hole in the wall drugstore and do ignore the missing chocolate piece with the caramel center ;;; 
> 
> Anyway, thank you guys so much for reading and giving kudos and comments! It really makes the process of things move smoother, and I hope you guys continue to stick around for the next track! 
> 
> Trivia and Notes:
> 
> -Ushi means cow in Japanese. Sawabobo is a jumbled up nickname that sounds similar to the term Sarubobo which can literally mean baby monkey. Apparently the term bobo can mean something vulgar.
> 
> -Jotaro finally graced himself in this chapter. Granted he’s not fully established, but he will be (spoiler: soon). 
> 
> -There's no such thing as violet flavored bubblegum. The closest thing to it might be C. Howard's Violet Gum or their mints. I've tried the mints a long time ago and honestly, I don't like it. 
> 
> -5-yen coins or Go-En are considered good luck and are commonly used for Shinto Shrine offerings as a way for the donor to establish a good connection to the deity of the shrine. So Akahiko and Kenichi’s suggestion of Chouko having rolls of 5-yen coins in her fists was not only just to make her punches heavier.
> 
> -Like her dad and sister, Chouko does work. But where exactly? Some of her hobbies and mannerisms point out something. 
> 
> -You may have probably heard the song featured in the chapter's title in the animated adaptation of Kare Kano. The song was originally sung by Folk Rock singer Yosui Inoue.


	3. Track 3: Summertime, Summertime

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alright ladies and gents, it seems the Loser has decided to take a chance on playing fate’s game and now wants to stand up against her bullies. That’s a big step for someone who would take a beating without putting much of a fight. And it’s all thanks to those gruff looking pals of hers and that voice in her heart that’s pushing her to new undiscovered limits. But I wonder if Loser can succeed? The Pink Lips are no slouch when it comes to taking down their competition especially if it’s a pretty face, and the newest addition to the Lucky 7s is a bit of a mystery. I guess we have to watch fate unfold this. Though in the meantime, let’s think about summertime and what we can all do under the warmth of the sun and the coolness of the beach’s shoreline.
> 
> **CLICK!**
> 
> Opening song for Chap 2-??: Break! Break! Tic! Tac! by Satelillte Young
> 
> Ending song for Chap 1-??: Here Comes That Sound Again by Love De-Luxe With Hawkshaw's Discophonia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Featured characters so far:
> 
> Chouko Fukuyama: Not really fond of playing poker due to unspecified reasons.
> 
> Akahiko Hisao: Recently hustled two third year students for their money (200,000 yen to be exact). Lost some of the money from poker matches with Kenichi and the HardnRock owner. 
> 
> Kenichi Hisaji: Recently won some dough from Akahiko. Used his wins to buy trail mix for himself and his butler Jetsam, and snacks for his hamster. They ate Ben’s snack mix on accident while the latter happily ate their snack.

[ ](https://www.flickr.com/gp/164904959@N02/k362R2)

*~June 18, 1987~*

-5:00 AM-

-43 hours until Saturday’s Match-

The sun slowly rose up into the sky as the people from down below were about began their day. At a nearby park beside a huge building site which both were located on the other side of the metropolis, a drowsy freshman was having a crash course on fistifcuffs from her two thuggish seniors.

“C’MON! ONE, TWO, PUNCH! ONE, TWO, PUNCH! ONE, TWO, PUNCH!” Chouko heard her red headed leader’s rhythmic command, and followed up by punching a duffle bag which was held up by her ducktail deputy.

“TAKE IT TO THE MAX! IF YOU CAN SLAP KAHO, YOU SURE AS HELL CAN BEAT THE SHIT OUT OF HER!” Kenichi advised as he held the thing for her. This was the sixth round of punching a bag full of dirty laundry, and she was already showing signs of exhaustion.

“DON’T CRAP OUT NOW! YOU GOT THIS FAR! PUSH IT TO THE LIMIT!” Akahiko cheered observed his junior’s moves while crouching down on the gravelly ground. Unlike his two pals who wore their summer uniforms, he donned a construction worker get-up, and in his hands was a pair of stylish fingerless gloves. He gripped onto the well sewn gloves and stood up from the ground. 

“SEVENTH ROUND! FOUR MORE TO GO” 

Chouko prepared herself to hit the bag. As she took a deep breath, she spotted something floating around Kenichi. It was a weird transparent blob of sorts that quickly vanished into thin air.

She rubbed her eyes. Either there was dust in her eyes or the lack of a good night rest was finally getting her. She had a feeling it was latter. However, she did not regret her decision to stay up all night for her sister to return from her evening job at the local gym. After all, who else was going to say “Welcome back” to her love ones when they return from a taxing day at work?

Chouko’s eyelids began to droop as her legs began to wobble. She led out a yawn. Usually she was wide awake at this hour, but this time, she felt like she needed forty winks. _‘Are you tired?’_ A pathetic voice echoed out in her head. She mentally nodded to the bodiless voice. _‘Then close your eyes forever. Their time and their efforts are wasted on someone as dishonorable as you,’_ Her heart twinged as she wiped away her sweat that looked suspiciously like tears.

“Oi Cho-chan, you alright?” She heard Kenichi calling out to her concernedly. 

“M-my my, yes!” She turned her walkman’s volume up a bit. The lack of sleep was getting to her, but hopefully the loud music could keep her awake.

_休むことも許されず　笑うことは止められて_

_You don't even let yourself sleep, and don't smile any more._

_はいつくばって　はいつくばって_

_Grovelling in the dirt, grovelling in the dirt..._

_一体　何を探しているのか_

_What in the world are you looking for?_

‘What am I looking for?’ She asked herself as the folk rock song muffled out the twisted part of her inner mind. She forcibly went back into a fighting stance. It was time for her to go for the kill. After that, it’s off to school where there will be a coin toss that will determine everything for Saturday. Then on that aforementioned day, Chouko will represent the Lucky 7s crew, and go against the nettlesome Pink Lips leader Kaho Shiokawa.

Memories of yesterday’s event at the rooftop filled Chouko’s head. After slapping the Pink Lips leader Kaho hard enough to leave a blistering red mark on one’s cheek, Chouko was quickly pulled away by the two boys while the aforementioned sukeban was restrained by her lackeys. A part of aforementioned brunette wished that her seniors just let her loose, but she knew well enough that should not ever happen. If it did, her face would be unrecognizable at the end of her reckless struggle, and the Pink Lips would have another notch in their sadistic studded lipstick covered belt. 

Chouko and Kenichi stood by Akahiko’s side while a smirking Kaho had her arms crossed as her harem stood grudgingly near her back. It was like seeing a low grade piece of cloth getting surrounded by an eclipse of moths which use to be a kaleidoscope of butterflies. Truly a revolting sight. Though one cannot help, but feel empathy for the group who were warped into that state. 

The two opposing gangs stood dead center of the rooftop.

 _“Let’s settle this once and for all with a good ol’game between terrible rivals!”_ Akahiko declared to his rival gang’s leader who was rubbing their reddened cheek. _“Pinfinger or fisticuffs! All decided by Lady Luck on Friday! While Saturday will be the big day,”_ He proposed which caught the interest of the sukeban leader and some of her squadmates.

 _“And if you cuntbags lose, then you’ll leave my soldier alone and forfeit your throne in Murasaki High,”_ He declared as he stood diligent with his red mullet-esque hair blowing against the soft breeze. For just a brief moment, the thuggish boy almost looked like a king of a long forgotten realm, but if someone ever told him that, he’ll brush it off with a bashful chuckle. 

_‘And if we win Prince Peasant?’_ Kaho inquired Akahiko. The sukeban had no interest of risking her title and her crew’s reputation for some delinquent war game against a low-ranking squad. But because she stood in front of someone that she knew since childhood, that childish lovesick part of herself wanted to get involved. 

_“If you win, you can take Cho-chan and the Lucky 7’s hideout along with its assets will be given to you and your skanks,”_ Kenichi joined in the conversation which left the false brunette awestruck. The ducktail teen would never put all his eggs in one basket. The only few times he would ever do something like was that he had a good feeling the odds were in his or his crew’s favor. 

_“That’s right,”_ Akahiko grinned at his deputy’s high-stakes proposal and pulled his soft hearted soldier to his side. _“So what do you say Mosquito-tan? A Saturday match between you and our possible newest addition, the Maid from Hell! High risks, high rewards!”_ He exclaimed to Kaho with a cocky grin. 

Chouko was stunned to hear all those things from her seniors. After her disgraceful attack on a rival gang leader, the two Lucky 7 leaders still want in on a risky war game while having so much hope for someone that had the tendency to lose. 

_‘They really have that much faith in me?’_ Sheheld back her tears. It was common for her to break into tears for so many things whether it was joy or anger. But for just that one moment, she desperately wanted to feign strength for them, and show no more weakness to her tormentors. 

_“Vii vii vii~ Will see about that Prince Peasant. I hope you like chrysanthemums Public Bicycle, because you’ll be sleeping on a bed of them once I snap that pretty little neck of yours in half.”_

‘I can’t lose,” Chouko continued punching the bag. ‘If I do, I’ll…’ Her lips crumpled into a frown as she envisioned her school uniform wearing corpse being mourned over by her older sister while the two thuggish lads sobbed as they put cassettes, batteries, and violet bubblegum into the the girl’s flower filled casket. She felt her eyes tearing up.

_‘It’s hopeless… I am going to di-’_

**“BARABARA!”**

She snapped out of her nightmarish daydream as she felt a sharp electric jolt surging through her nerves. “Ba-barabara!” She cried out as she struck the bag with one final punch. But like all her other strikes, it lacked the kinetic energy that regular punches had. Her fist sank into the center of the duffle bag like she was about to knead a glob of bread dough. Seconds after delivering a lackluster punch, she pulled her fist away from the thing, and covered her face with her hands.

The two boys stood speechless at what they just witnessed.

“Nah Chouko...” Akahiko slowly called out to his flustered junior.

“Yes Akahiko?” She mumbled through her hands. 

“Chrysanthemums or lilies?” 

She moved her hands away from her terror stricken face. “NONE!” She screamed in horror.

“Maa, maa! Fine, I won’t get those for your sis’ birthday… Though now that I think about it, that might be in bad taste.” 

Thirty minutes passed after the girl’s shameful display of brawling. The three teens sat on a nearby wooden bench with cans of assorted beverages from a nearby vending machine. They sipped their drinks quietly while watching strangers and cars pass by the area. 

The skies above them was a weird blend blue and yellow while the atmosphere was a pleasant mixture of warm and cool temperatures. These were the signs to the three teens that Summer was approaching and their break was coming soon.

“Well, if we’re bored out of our skulls, we all could hang at my folks’ place and then hit it up at the arcades,” Kenichi stated as he drank his can of green tea. While he may not fully express it, he enjoyed the idea of bringing company over to his family’s mansion over the Summer while wasting time and pocket change at the arcades. 

“Jets been itching to play against you Akahiko.”

“Tell that butler of yours that I’ll see him at the finish line,” The red headed boy flashed a cocky grin at his best friend. Summer was like Christmas to the seventeen year old, and because his recent grades had some merit, there was no need for him to go to school for remedial lessons during break. 

“This break is going to be fun! I can feel it in my blood! And hell, if we save enough money, we can go on a trip to the most happiest place on earth...” Akahiko stood up from his seat and rose his fist in air. “ACTION PARK!” He screamed happily which caused Kenichi to facepalm.

Kenichi narrowed his eyes at his buddy. “That’s the last place you should ever go to. And if we really want to vacay in the U.S. of A, we need more than a couple of peanuts to cover traveling expenses...” He explained as he watched his redheaded pal fantasize about going to an amusement water park in New Jersey. “And hospital bills,” The ducktail boy finished with a concerned frown.

Chouko smiled softly as she watched the boys’ gush about the many possibilities for this upcoming Summer break. The hot sunny time of the year was something that she personally did not like. That one season is usually associated with visiting relatives from distant places, festivals, and going on small trips with friends. While the false brunette had the first thing covered, the last two things made her heart ache. 

‘Summer...’ She pressed the pause button on her walkman. From looking back at her past breaks, she did not have any friends to hang around with, and during those brief periods of relaxation, she either found herself alone in her grandparents’ place in Cocoa Beach, Florida or holed up in her bedroom as the town outside her window lit up fireworks to celebrate Tanabata. 

“Nah Cho-chan, got any plans that you wanna do for the Summer?” 

Chouko turned her attention to Akahiko and Kenichi. It felt a little weird to hear someone besides her relatives asking on what she wanted to do on break. But that sensation was quickly replaced with warmth and nostalgia.

She recalled how she befriended the two boys. She use to play with them with her sister when all of them were small, but due to circumstances, she drifted from them. But when she saw the two boys again on her first day of high school, it was a rollercoaster of pent up emotions, hostile silence, and aggression. While she kept pushing them away, they kept reaching out to her in their comedic yet abrasive ways imaginable. At some point, she got use to their antics and even shared her lunches with them. Then on that exact day when she finally was about to let her guard down, she snapped at them. She did not remember what caused her to crack nor the spiteful things she said. But she can vividly recall the pain the two boys felt. The emotions from them did not feel artificial or had any traces of pity. It felt genuine and warm. Like it came straight from the deepest most sacred part of one’s body and soul. She realized she messed up, and because she believed she could not undo what she just committed, she accepted her loss and ran away in tears.

But miraculously, that loss of hers turned into a win. A couple of days after that little fallout, the two Lucky 7s leaders fought a bunch of hooligans from a rival school in an alleyway. The two boys were down on their knees, and right before their rivals finished them off, a familiar face came running to their aid. It was none other than the loser Chouko who shielded the two with a sharp switchblade in her scarred hands.

That eventful day ended with the Lucky 7s leaders losing a match with a rival gang. However, the two boys were not mad about their loss. In fact, they were happy because they did gain something at the end of their struggle. It was a cute smile from their junior and their newfound friend that finally gained back the strength to flee away from the doldrums. And that said junior and friend finally gained some happiness that she always believed was unobtainable. 

‘I don’t want to lose this feeling or them. But how can I win against those Pink Lips pests? I’m not really good at fighting, and I doubt _Lady Luck_ will be on my side today...’ Chouko wondered heavily. Seconds later, she slightly jumped out of her seat as something metallic and blistering cold touched her cheek.

“Earth to Chouko!” Akahiko shouted as he pulled his iced coffee can away his junior’s face. “Is there anything you want to do during break?” He repeated his question.

Chouko clasped onto her milk tea and looked toward her seniors. “The Morning Glory festival is coming in a couple of weeks... But that might be too boring for all of us…” She drifted and proceeded to think hard on what other activities they can all do together on break. Her eyes shot open. “Oh! How about we go to the beach and the aquarium? Sis has been dying to go the beach, and there’s that new coral exhibit at the aquarium,” She suggested lightly. 

“The beach…” Akahiko closed his eyes. “The sun, swimsuits, yakisoba, watermelons to smash, and fireworks to blow up. We can so celebrate Mariya’s birthday there! Absolute choice!” The redhead agreed with a thumbs up. 

“However, I do need approval from my right hand man,” He smiled toward his ducktail pal who was taking a long sip of his tea drink. 

Kenichi politely placed down his can of tea on his lap. “As long as I can stick close to the shoreline and that all of us are having fun, I’m fine with it,” Kenichi stated firmly. “As for the aquarium, that’s out of the question and off limits,” He finished with a stern face.

Chouko tilted her head. “But why though? Did something bad happened there?” She asked her crush curiously.

Akahiko laid back on the bench. “Oh yeah, I never told you that one horror story,” He said as he threw his juice can into a nearby recycling bin. 

“Well it’s like this, last Summer I was working as the aquarium’s mascot, and one Friday in July, I was about to meet up with your sister down at the shark tanks. But as soon as I left the dressing room, I spotted Kujo who was at the Dolphin Exhibit which was currently holding a show. So I saw him going in the back and-” Akahiko told his story, but was completely cut off by Kenichi who covered the former’s mouth.

The ducktail teen gritted his teeth in disgust. “Stop aniki. Jets is making chirinabe today,” He insisted. “Doing that shit to fish or some animal just ain’t right man…” He continued as he felt his stomach churning from remembering the gross details of his friend’s horror story.

“I know. It’s grody as fuck man,” Akahiko agreed as he found himself recalling the horrid details of his tale of seeing JoJo at the local aquarium.

Chouko arched her eyebrow at the her two horrified friends. ‘What? Is Kujo a pescatarian?’ She pondered. But as the delinquent’s name appeared in her mind, she remembered yesterday’s awkward encounter with him. The way they made eye contact made her shiver in fear. ‘I hope that doesn’t happen again,’ She envisioned the boy’s piercing stare and then she came to a startling bone chilling realization.

“KUJO IS A FIRST YEAR?!” 

~~~~~~~~~

-8:10 AM-

\- Less than 40 hours until Saturday’s Match-

The dawn skies have turned into a pleasant shade of clear blue. It was almost time for Murasaki High School to close their gates and began their session. Chouko and Kenichi had just left the local train station, and were now dashing through sidewalks and crossways just to get to school in time. It was only the two of them going to class. However, their redheaded leader said that he will join them later today. 

“Can’t blame Akahiko. It’s either a day of teachers bitching or having to hear the landlord nag about the rent being late,” Kenichi said to Chouko who was doing her best to keep up with him while chewing a piece of violet bubblegum to freshen her breath.

“I just hope he doesn’t get caught by Mr. Watanabe,” Chouko replied, and as the two reached the western side of their high school’s brick wall, they spotted a large body of girls crowding around a certain delinquent heartthrob.

“JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.”“JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” “JoJo.” 

**"SHUT THE HELL UP! YOU’RE ALL SO DAMN ANNOYING!"**

As the irritated Jotaro screamed at his stubborn lovestruck groupies, the two teens snuck around them. But as they passed through the school’s metal gate, one of them could not shake the feeling that she was being watched. 

Chouko turned around. All she saw was just a sea of girls demanding affection from the brooding first year student. But then she spotted a pair of perm wearing girls crying. 

“My hair is so ugly now! How is JoJo going to fall for me if I look like this?!” A freckled student cried as she tried to hide her hair.

“I-it’s not so bad! Look at the bright side, at least the Pink Lips will stop bugging us now!? Oh god, we’re so ugly now~” The freckled student’s friend tried to reassure them, but deep down, both of them were devastated that they have to cut and perm their hair just to get on the sukeban crew’s good side.

“We so need to bag our heads later after school.” The freckled student’s friend said in defeat, and both of them continue to admire their crush from afar.

Chouko’s eyes softened at what she just witnessed. ‘Forced to cut their hair? How terrible,’ She felt empathy for those two girls, and then she looked over to Kenichi who was chatting with his fellow delinquent buddies at the main building entrance. 

_"You should be more attentive to that mop of yours Cho-chan.”_ She remembered her crush’s advice, and she lightly fiddled with her lifeless bangs.

‘I wonder what kind of hairstyle should I do?’ She tucked her hair to reveal her pierced ears, and proceeded to blow a purple gum bubble. She walked off to join Kenichi and the other Lucky 7s members unbeknownst by the fact that someone was indeed watching her from the center of an ocean of infatuated sirens.

~~~~~~~~~

“See you later at lunch Kenichi!” Chouko said her goodbyes to her ducktail senior as he headed off to homeroom. After fully seeing him off, she headed over to her classroom. When she finally reached reached her destination, she closed her eyes and slowly took off her headphones. 

….

**‘Ugh, I dozed off after 15 mins of that porno. God can that Erika move and twist~’**

**‘Mom is giving away money to those robed people again. I hope we don’t lose our house.’**

**‘Shit, shit, shit, I forgot there’s a test today!’**

**‘Shit, shit, shit, I forgot to print out the tests for today!’**

**‘Fucking Ushirara. She’s lucky I didn’t break her fingers yet.’**

**'LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME!LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME!LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME!LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME!LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME!LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME! LOVE ME!'**

**‘LOVE ME JOJO! NOT THOSE BIG BOOBED LONG HAIRED BIMBOS!’**

Chouko welded her eyes shut as quickly stuffed her ears with a pair of earplugs. This accursed condition that she had since middle school was really getting on her nerves. Not only it was dreadful to listen to other people’s deepest thoughts along with feeling some of their inner emotions, it was also painful to spend a good portion of allowance money on a huge supply of batteries and earplugs. How she got this affliction was beyond her. All she can remember was that she had it since she was little, and it got worse when she was in middle school.

_“We’ll meet up again tomorrow right?”_

Chouko restrained herself from remembering things from the past, and stashed her walkman deep into her bag. She slid the classroom’s door opened, and found herself being stared by her peers. Without saying a word, she walked over to desk. But as she reached her seat, her heart instantly sank. 

The surface of her desk was riddled with obscene phrases, and on the center was a single flower in a vase. The flower was a white chrysanthemum which surprisingly contrasted well with the freshly written red graffiti.

“Hehehehehehe,” A giggle escaped someone’s throat, and other students proceeded to laugh. 

The false brunette ignored it by sitting herself on her desk. Once she got situated, she took out her handkerchief from her bag. She wiped away the graffiti and placed the flower vase underneath her desk. There she spotted something attached to the flower’s stem. It was a tiny paper tag that had her name written in red ink, and beside it was a pink kiss mark.

“Alright students settle down now~!” The homeroom teacher Ryoko Mochizuki entered the classroom. Once everything was settled, the teacher proceeded to do role call.

...

“Eguchi!” 

“Here!”

“Fukuyama!”

“Here!”

“Surprised to see that you’re joining us today.” 

“Nishimura!”

“Here!”

“Kotohime!”

“...” 

Before the homeroom teacher could strike off the student absent, someone slid the door open. Chouko and her classmates turned their heads to see who it was. Standing at the door was Urara who was covered in bruises, and her skirt was tattered.

<==To be Continued 7❀

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay everyone! This chapter was suppose to lead up the match between Chouko and Kaho, but during the time I was making the plotline for this chapter, I realized it would be too long and thought it would be best to divide it into their own chapters. On the brightside, it’s allowing me to build up the characters and relationships first before getting into first course of meat and potatoes. Anyway rest assured, the next chapter will hopefully be exhilarating for you guys to read or at least shocking to some. Thanks so much for reading, leave a comment/kudos, and stay tuned for the next track!
> 
> Trivia and Notes:
> 
> -The song used for this chapter's title is Summertime, Summertime by Nocera
> 
> -You were expecting Akahiko to say a particular mouse park? Nope. It’s Action Park; an amusement and water park that’s known for it’s dangerous rides. What a thrill seeker. 
> 
> -The single flower in a vase on Chouko’s desk may seem harmless, but it’s actually an extremely crude form of ijime or bullying. Flowers are usually placed on one’s desk if that student has passed on, and putting flowers on a live student’s desk indicates that someone is wishing for their death. 
> 
> -In Japanese culture, writing one’s name in red ink is considered to be a taboo because that’s the same color used for grave markers of the deceased. Writing a live person’s name in red ink suggests that said person’s life is coming to an end.
> 
> Bonus Art: A friend to call me own. I'll never be alone. And you my friend will see, you got a friend in me~  
> [](https://www.flickr.com/gp/164904959@N02/25oXFc)  
> 


	4. Track 4: Broken Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alright ladies and gents. Today's the coin toss between two gangs in Murasaki High. This is pretty exciting for the Lucky 7s and their potential soldier whose determined to not lose anything especially her happiness when she's with her pals. I wonder why Loser feels that way? Like I said earlier, she is a bit of a mystery. But something tells me behind those broken eyes, there is something tragic yet miraculous that needs to be unveiled. Maybe a favored coin toss will get things in motion.
> 
> **Click**
> 
> Opening song for Chap 2-??: Break! Break! Tic! Tac! by Satelillte Young
> 
> Ending song for Chap 1-??: Here Comes That Sound Again by Love De-Luxe With Hawkshaw's Discophonia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Featured characters so far:
> 
> Chouko Fukuyama: Cooks most of her family's meals. Has a bad habit of making too many leftovers.
> 
> Akahiko Hisao: On a tight budget, but manages to not poison himself or others when cooking up some grub. Aside from Chouko, he can withstand her sister's cooking.
> 
> Kenichi Hisaji: Can cook, but due to being very careful, he takes too long. Does not like frying. Tries his best to stomach lunches that are made by Chouko’s sister.
> 
> Urara Kotohime:  
> Age 16  
> Likes: Crafting jewelry and accessories, Cooking, Makeup, Gambling, Claw crane games, Volleyball, Yoyos, Reading romance stories, Magazines (MonMonCherie or Sweet Olivia), Singing (If a karaoke machine has any of her favs, watch out!), Spoiling herself with something nice.
> 
> Dislikes: Being idle for too long. Studying and homework. The Pink Lips crew. Sore losers. Winter. Sewing. Bugs. Cooking.
> 
> -Recently tried cooking curry for her grandparents. Enjoys poker or any card game, but no one wants to play with her at lunch.

The school’s hallways were empty, and classes were currently in session. Inside of the school’s infirmary, Nurse Sumika Kanebo was doing some paperwork while savoring a couple of sweet milk candies in her mouth. As she was about to jot something down with an expensive fountain pen, she pulled something out of her desk drawer. It was a simple FM radio. She switched the device on, and was welcomed by the sounds of a soft rock song that was already at its’ final moments. 

The main nurse placed her pen down to listen to the song. Even though she did not fully understood the English language, the melody and the woman’s vocals reminded her of good times.

Nurse Kanebo listened to the tune as she rubbed the back of her bowl-shaped haircut. She used to have long luxurious hair, but after a messy breakup with a fellow colleague, it became brittle and riddled with split ends. One day, she decided to start fresh with an equally fresh haircut. This resulted to not only making her ex boyfriend’s heart throb, but also making his thieving new girlfriend green with envy. This was all thanks to her secret hairdresser who has a sibling that’s attending the same school that she was currently working in. 

_“Hm...Hm…Hm…Hm...Hm…”_

White noise emitted out of the radio. The middle aged nurse fiddled with one of the dials. ‘Don’t tell me it’s busted,’ She worried at the thought of purchasing another radio, but just as the soft rock song ended, the main door slid open. Standing at the sole entrance of the room were two female students; Chouko and Urara. The latter was covered with bruises and scrapes, and their skirt was tattered.

“Kotohime!” The nurse immediately sprung out of her seat.

~~~~

-11:15 AM-

-Less than 48 hours until Saturday’s match-

“Good thing you had your track pants with you! Now get some rest, and wait until everything is fixed up,” Nurse Kanebo stated as she gave the ponytail girl some privacy by enclosing them with the medical curtain. As she left her latest patient to rest on one of the vacant medical beds, the middle aged woman return to her work desk. There she found a small sewing kit, a crumpled up beauty magazine, and an opened sketchbook which revealed a rough sketch of the school’s seifuku.

Sitting near the desk was Chouko who had a threaded needle in her hand. By using one of the needles and threads from a sewing kit that the nurse kept on her desk, the sixteen year old was able to stitch up the tears in her classmate’s skirt. Without disturbing the seamstress, the head nurse sat herself back onto her office chair. 

“Nice to see you again Fukuyama,” She greeted Chouko lightly. “Though it would be nicer if you visited me normally instead of skipping homeroom again,” She then scolded them for flaking out on their classes these past couple of days. 

Like all her patients and her regular visitors that skip class, Kanebo had developed a bond with the female student. In the first months of school, the latter spent most of her school time in the infirmary. But recently, the regular visitations and requests of doing school work at the medic bay stopped. Then one day, the fragile looking patient told the nurse that she’s attending her classes, and will continue doing so. The girl kept her word, but recently, there was word of her not attending her classes which raised some concern for Kanebo.

“If you continue skipping, you’ll have to repeat the whole year with Mochizuki again, and both of us know well enough that’s not good,” She advised Chouko who bowed their head in shame.

“I’m sorry Ms. Kanebo,” The teen apologized as she continued to patch up the skirt. “I promised you that I won’t skip anymore, but…” She paused as she recollected on what happened to her classmate. 

The ponytail student Urara came into the classroom with bruises and a tattered skirt. Everyone was dead silent when they saw her standing at the entrance way, but seconds later, a group of students broke into a fit of laughter. Half of the class joined in, and the homeroom teacher did nothing, but give a scornful gaze to her pupil who was visibly hurt.

Hearing the laughter and seeing the saddened expression on Urara’s face struck a chord with Chouko. She may of had a blank expression on her face, but her somewhat dim colored eyes were tearing up. Her heart was breaking at the sight. It was like a part of her past was being unfolded in front of her, except there was no haircut or a sharp pencil involved this time.

_“I’m sorry… I’m sorry that I didn’t protect you!”_

_“Your hair… What happened?”_

 

‘Make it stop. Make it stop. Someone. Anyone. Please. I don’t want her to be or feel broken like…’ She pleaded, but all she could hear is her heartbeat. She wanted to get up and off her seat, but a miserable guilt filled presence had shackled her down. 

_‘It’s hope-…’_ The twisted voice was about to repeat it’s honeyed yet despairing mantra, but it was immediately muffled out by not only her heartbeat, but a loud staticky cry.

**“BARABARA!”**

Suddenly feeling that a 100 million needles stabbed her nerves all at once, Chouko stood from her seat which immediately stopped the mocking laughter. An electrifying jolt of energy was surging through her body, and it kicked her fight response on. As her nerves burned, she grabbed her things, and headed over to her classmate. Before the homeroom teacher Mochizuki could say or do anything to stop her student, they froze when they caught a glimpse of her face. For a split second, the teacher felt like they were locking eyes with their parents who would be deeply ashamed of their child’s actions as a teacher. 

Leaving the entire class and the teacher stupefied, Chouko went on her way to carefully guide Urara to the infirmary. Unlike yesterday’s encounter, the two girls did not say a word to each other. But despite the silence, the quiet yet comforting air between them was enough to soothe them both.

“I want to fix her skirt,” Chouko said instead of saying another spineless excuse for skipping classes. She looked to the nurse, and then to the damaged skirt that had a pink stain at the bottom. It was obvious that this was the Pink Lips doing, and she had an idea on who inflicted those injuries onto her classmate. Her blood simmered at the thought of the lipstick wearing sukeban clique, and the two malicious leaders; Kaho Shiokawa and Sawa Yoshimoto. She was furious, but because she was currently sewing something, she concentrated all her anger into the tears that she’s carefully repairing. 

“It’s so pricy to replace a uniform, and luckily the tears are super easy to fix,” She continued to patch up the piece of clothing with ease. 

Nurse Kanebo stared at the skirt on the girl’s lap. Aside from the stains, it almost looked brand new and like what the brunette teenager said, it was a miracle the damages were easy to repair. However, the fact that someone in school did that to a fellow student deeply upsetted the woman.

“The school uniform is like the heart and armor to all students, and nostalgia to adults like myself. Getting it ruined or torn up by someone is a heinous crime and such a waste of resources,” Kanebo commented calmly as she reached over to her radio. “Then again, I shouldn’t be saying those sort of things on the count of cutting up uniforms in the past!” The middle aged woman joked, and as she changed the station on her radio, she heard the sounds of curtains sliding open.

Kanebo and Chouko turned their attention over to the infirmary beds to find a track pants wearing Urara sitting in the middle of the mattress cross legged. The ponytail girl’s knees were bandaged up, and her scratched up cheek was covered up with a simple bandaid.

Urara looked over the bowl-cut shaped haircut woman. “Can you turn up the volume Ms. Kanebo? It’s Michael Jackson!” She pleaded happily which instantly perked the ears of both the nurse and Chouko.

Kanebo chuckled as she heard her patient’s demands. “Can’t blame you. Michael’s voice is like a cure all for anyone’s heart,” She responded with a smile, and just before she could comply to her patient’s wish, someone opened the door.

“KANEBO! A STUDENT COLLAPSED IN THE GYM!” A fellow staff member declared, and the aforementioned nurse got out of her seat.

The bowl-shaped haircut woman dashed out of her office. “Got to go. Keep the radio at a decent volume you two, and turn it off when you both leave for lunch~” She looked over her shoulder with a smile.

“See you later Ms. Kanebo,” Chouko waved goodbye to the Nurse as they quietly slid the door closed.

The two students sat alone in the infirmary. Chouko continued sewing Urara’s skirt, and the latter sat comfortably on the bed while reading her Sweet Olivia magazine. As another song played on the radio, she finished up her last stitch.

**_‘LOVE ME JOJO! NOT THOSE BIG BOOBED LONG HAIRED BIMBOS!’_ **

‘That voice and those words… It’s definitely coming from Kaho,’ The main leader of the Pink Lips and memories of said clique flashed in Chouko’s head. 

_**'I don't want to be with them anymore!'** _

**_'Kaho and Sawa are so creepy. I hate them.'_ **

**_“My hair is so ugly now! How is JoJo going to fall for me if I look like this?!”_ **

‘Big boobed. Long hair,’ She briefly gazed down at her ample chest and then fiddled with her hair. As she touched her hair, she remembered the two students who cried about their new permed hairstyle earlier, Urara’s injuries, and the other girls who were forced to join the group. All of them had those features that the female delinquent not only did not like, but also did not have. 

‘All that torment because of her own shortcomings, but why is she doing this? It’s almost like before…’ Memories of long ago formed in Chouko’s head. 

_“Hey... What happened to your hair?”_ An image of a worried cherry red haired boy enveloped in Chouko’s mind briefly.

‘No, no, I don’t want to remember any of that…’ Her swiftly pulled the needle through the skirt’s cloth as she pushed away the heartrending memories into the dark corners of her mind. The repairs to the clothing were finally completed, and the somewhat peeved seamstress put away all the sewing materials back into its container. 

‘And done,’ She wiped away the sweat from her brow with a tired smile.

“Whooa, you drew all of those?!” Urara peered over the brunette’s shoulder which caused her to jump from her seat. 

“Sorry, didn’t mean to sneak up on you,” The copper brown haired girl apologized.

“My, my, no harm done,” Chouko reassured Urara, and then handed them their skirt. 

“Sorry for the wait. If you find any problems, please let me know.”

Urara went behind the medical curtains that was connected to the bed that she laid on. Seconds later, the curtain slid open to reveal the ponytail girl in her newly repaired skirt. The skirt’s length was slightly altered which exposed her kneecaps. Despite the sudden change in length, every scissor based tear was gone, and there were no signs of holes or misorganized stitches. 

Chouko sighed lightly. “Looks good!” She declared happily, but then she saw that Urara was staring heavily at the ground.

“No, it’s not good,” Chouko’s heart sank when she heard those words. “IT’S TRES BON! VERY GOOD!” The ponytail classmate exclaimed in tears, and their emotional reaction left the former slightly dumbfounded. But that small bit of confusion was quickly replaced with a relieved smile. 

Chouko watched as Urara posed in the skirt. Even though the length was altered, the owner was quite fond of the new style. It was sporty and cute at the same time. A perfect match for someone who is always on the move.

“Ahhhhh~ It’s like I’ve been visited by the Fairy Godmother from Cinderella! This really made my day!” Urara gushed as she wiped away her tears.

Seeing her classmate sniffling, Chouko handed them her handkerchief. But instead of them grabbing the frilly hanky, they held onto the former’s hand.

“Thank you so much!” Urara blubbered out her gratitude, but shortly after grabbing Chouko’s right hand, the former’s cheerful smile was replaced with a concerned frown. The ponytail girl spotted the scars on their hand. They ranged from small to medium sized cuts, but the most notable one was a jagged circle shaped one that was centered on the back of the hand.

“...They’re pretty ugly huh?” Chouko tried to lighten up the mood with a self-deprecating joke, but instead of hearing her classmate giggle, she felt them squeezing her hand tighter. 

‘Who am I kidding? They’re not ugly, they’re revolting…’ The false brunette corrected herself. Just like her heart, her hands were permanently etched with painful memories. But unlike her emotionally corroded blood filled organ, she could not conceal the ugliness of her palms. Gloves were always an option, but she was not thrilled of the idea of wearing them all day long or copying off her red headed aniki’s signature style. Despite that she came to accept her scars, but that did not fully deter her from feeling hideous when others look upon the marks on a surface level.

“...” Urara remained silent as she continued to stare at the scars. 

Sadness enveloped in Chouko’s chest as she watched her ponytail classmate observed her scars. There was a blend of concern and worry in their eyes, and because of her strange ability, she could feel what they were currently feeling inside. Kindness, sincerity, and heartache. They were the same emotions and sensations that she felt from others who understood a little bit of her unspoken plight.

_“Those scars… You been through a lot huh? It’s alright. We’ve been through hard times too...”_

_“Nah, you don’t need that anymore. After all, you’re in good hands now. Here, I’ll hold on to it.”_

_**“Whatever happened before had left you feeling like this... But you know...”** _

**“You’re not tied to that or anything else.”**

**“Bara...Bara…”**

Feeling something wet sliding down the side of her face, Chouko slinked her hands out of Urara’s grasp. ‘Don’t cry you crybaby idiot…’ She scolded herself as she wiped away the wetness that was coming from her eyes. After drying up her tears, she moved her attention to Urara who went over to the Nurse Kanebo’s desk. 

“That bandaid. Did you get that from sewing my skirt back together?” The ponytail girl asked calmly. 

“My, my, no,” Chouko shook her head. “I got it from chopping onions,” She lied through her teeth. Technically she was chopping vegetables for yesterday’s dinner, but she did not get her injury from doing a mundane activity. In truth, she cut her finger from doing a couple rounds of pinfinger which use to be an immoral pastime for the false brunette teen. A tiny part of her wanted to tell Urara how she really got that cut on her finger, but she could not bring herself to do that. Her classmate was already having a rough day, and roping them into her current situation is a god awful idea.

“I forgot to put onions in the stir fry that I cooking for dinner yesterday, so I ended up cutting myself from rushing,” She continued her lie with a forced smile.

Urara narrowed their eyes a bit, and seconds later they clapped their hands together. “Oh, that makes sense!” The ponytail girl answered kindly, and reached over something on Nurse Kanebo’s desk. 

“Stir fry is super easy to do. But say, have you ever tried making curry from scratch? A couple of days ago, I tried doing that for my grandparents, but it came out tasting wrong…” She explained as she held up Chouko’s crumpled up magazine with a smile.

“Really? What did it taste like?” Chouko asked curiously. 

“Sweet and cinnamony… Like having a mouthful of apple pie!”

“My, my! You were trying out that Apple curry recipe from the lastest issue of Sweet Olivia! I’ve been wanting to make it, but knowing me, my family will have curry for an entire week.”

Urara shook her head with a wave of her index finger. “No, no, nothing wrong with that! You can always give the extra helpings to win your love’s stomach!” She suggested as her cheerful smile turned into a grin.

The two girls giggled, and both of them sat together at the nurse’s desk to read the crumpled MonMonCherie magazine together. As the music played on the radio, the girls chatted about things like cooking and shopping. It was a nice change of pace for Chouko to talk to someone who had similar interests. Hanging with a rough set of delinquents who do delinquent things is great in it’s own way, but talking to them about things like beauty tips and cute clothing can be a little cumbersome for both parties. 

“By the way… Thanks for saving me from Sawabo- I mean Sawa,” Chouko expressed her gratitude as she reached over to her sketchbook on the desk.

Urara laid back onto her seat with a smile. “No problem. You would do the same thing for me if I were in that position with that butt ugly monkey,” She responded with a laugh.

Chouko’s eyes widened a bit at her classmate’s response. An image of herself lying in a violet bubblegum filled coffin while all her friends mourned over her body briefly popped up in her head. “...That is true,” She agreed hesitantly, and as she flipped through her sketchbook, Urara’s eyes perked up.

“Ooh are those designs for earrings?” 

Before Chouko could answer her classmate’s question, the school bell rang loudly. 

“My, my, it’s lunch already…” 

“Oh my god, it is! I gotta go!” Urara shouted as she scrambled to pack up her things, and ran over to the door. “Thanks Chouko, and see you later at class!” She dashed out with a chipper grin.

“See you later Urara,” Chouko said to her classmate, and watched as they slid the door shut. Shortly after saying goodbye to them, she heavily stared at the clock on the wall. It was noon. Not only it was lunchtime for everyone at school, it was also time for all the delinquents at the campus to meet up at the back of the gym for some games. 

‘Pinfinger or fisitcuffs…’ Chouko repeated those words as she hurriedly packed up her things.

‘Lady Luck please smile down on the Lucky 7s… And me if you can.’

Before she could reach over to the door, someone slid it open. Standing before her was a familiar face, but she was not entirely happy to see them. Instead, she felt anxious, and blue like the color of the person’s eyes that casted a reflection of her delicate yet tired face. For a brief moment, she wondered if the person before her could see their reflection in her broken eyes.

“Oi, get out of the way,” The brooding freshman Jotaro Kujo commanded with a scowl, and the latter immediately complied to his harsh order.

Chouko’s lips shrank into a nervous frown. She knew the boy was a couple inches taller than all her hoodlum mates, but because he stood in front of her, the daunting first year student completely dwarfed her as if he was a powerful vengeful deity that came down from the Heavens, and she was a simple peasant that just happen to accidently cross paths with him.

Not wanting to be smited by her fellow peer, she backed away from him. “P-pardon me Kujo…” She gave him a slight apologetic bow, and once the latter fully entered the room, the former darted out of the room.

“S-see you later!” She spat out in a hurry, and ran off without realizing that she forgot to pack her beloved sketchbook into her bag.

“....” 

“Tch.” 

~~~~~~~

-12:15 PM-

“21! 21! 21!”

“JOKER! JOKER! JOKER!”

“21! 21! 21!”

“JOKER! JOKER! JOKER!”

**Flip**

“CARD IS JOKER! Cruisin Vespas, claim your prize of yakisoba bread and strawberry cream sandos!” 

“ARRRRRGHGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

“YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH”!

At the back of the gymnasium, a large group of students had gathered around the area. The smell of cigarettes and food lingered in the air, and a few of the school custodians was keeping a watchful eye on the area for things like trash or potential squealers. All of the teens there were hungry, but not just for food. They were starving for hefty wads of money, and prizes that ranged from ridiculous like food stuffs to outrageous like a rare promide or a carton of cigarettes. Once the winners claimed their prizes, the rest of teens in that area screamed while waving fistful of yen bills at a second year student who wore a pair of coke-bottle glasses.

“PLACE YOUR BETS FOR THE LAST ROUND! THE NEXT GAME IS A COIN FLIP! PINFINGER OR FISTICUFFS! THE LUCKY 7S’ MAIDEN FROM HELL VS THE QUEEN OF PINK LIPS! THEIR WAR GAME ALL DECIDED BY THE MYSTERIOUS BEAUTY HERSELF; LADY LUCK!” The nerdy second year student shouted at the top of his lungs. 

“MINIMUM OF ¥10,000! NO CHUMP CHANGE PEASANTS! MAXIMUM BET? THE SKIES THE LIMIT FOR ALL YOU FAT CATS!” 

In the bustling crowd of money hungry punks, there was a certain group of teens that had the number 7 as the main centerpiece in their gang’s insignia. Most of the gang consisted of juniors and seniors while only one was a freshman who not only looked like they do not belong in such a tough set, but also looked like they needed sleep. 

“God dammit, where the hell is Akahiko? Did he get caught by Mr. Watanabe again?” A senior student with a crew-cut asked as he munched down a rice ball that was filled with umeboshi or pickled plum. 

“Y-mphyeah where is he? It ain’t right to start without a full set,” A senior student with a fringed hair-do agreed as he munched on his lunch while watching the youngest member of the group rummage through her bag for something.

The Lucky 7s gang were currently finishing up their lunches while waiting for their leader Akahiko to return from one of his many part time jobs. There was suppose to be a coin toss between them and the Pink Lips to determine Saturday’s gang war game, but because the group’s redheaded captain was not present, the deputy or the second command of the Lucky 7s had to strike a deal with the dealer and host to postpone the coin flip for last.

“Aniki is probably laying low Motoki. Remember what happened in P.E.? The teachers are monitoring the whole place right now,” A second year student who stood at 162 cm and wore an unzipped tracksuit jacket explained to his two superiors who were eating their lunches. 

“Damn I almost forgot about that Sochi. Good thing Kenichi was there to help before Ms. Kanebo and the ambulance arrived,” The fringed-hair senior Motori Kurue said as he finished the last bit of his lunch. “But shit, can’t believe the cutie captain of the volleyball club has a severe case of anemia,” He along with the rest of the crew turned to the ducktail boy who was eating his meal quietly.

The ducktail teen swallowed his food. “And a worst case of skin rash too,” Kenichi recollected, and then he thanked for his meal. 

“The Raging Roids are going to have a field day when they hear of this,” He said as he wiped his mouth with his handkerchief, and the rest of the gang grimaced at the name of their arch rival gang.

The Raging Roids are a bunch of die-hard sport aficionados that reign Shinrinyoku Academy. Unlike like their high school’s friendly rivalry with Murasaki High, they have a deep-seated enmity towards the Lucky 7s, and vice versa. The bad blood between them stems from former Raging Roids mates; Hisao Akahiko and Mariya Fukuyama, and the Raging Roids’ leader Bunsei Kaku and his girl at that time. Due to an incident that almost got them killed, the two former gang members left, and one of them forged his own gang out of his own hard-earned luck.

Motori slammed his left fist into his right palm. “Those juiceheads need to be stomped!” He shouted with a grin, and the crew cut student joined in.

“Yeah! Who knows what they’ll do to our turf or the other sport teams when they catch wind about the volleyball team!?” The crew cut student shouted as he gripped onto his fist, and both seniors received a light bonk on the head by the shortest of the group Sochi.

“Those junkies won’t do anything since it’s sports season, and even if they did, that would be stupid of them to risk everything when their school’s baseball team is almost on their way to Koshien. And you and Taiga should be studying for your exams!” Sochi scolded his superiors while doing all he could to calm them down. As he continued to scold the two rowdy seniors, someone perched their hand on top of his spiky hair. 

“Booby’s right you two. Better buckle down on your studies or both of you have to stay another year in this hellhole with us,” A familiar redhead stood before the group, and almost everyone saw that their leader’s left cheek was all bruised up. It was a normal thing for the crew to find their leader having an injury or two, but whether he got his injuries from work or from a fight is anyone’s guess.

“What took you so damn long?” Kenichi asked as he carefully palpated his bud’s injury. 

“A really bizarre story. But I’ll tell you all about it later man. Right now, we have bigger fish to fry or in this case mosquitoes to be smacked,” A wincing Akahiko grinned, and after being checked by his ducktail friend, he walked over to Chouko who was frantically searching something in her bag. 

“Where is it? I could’ve sworn that I packed it…” Chouko frowned after emptying out her bag. Her prized sketchbook was nowhere to be found, and she was too distressed to figure out where she left it. She grumbled to herself, and then looking in the corner of her eye, her mouth hung open when she noticed that her sister’s boyfriend was standing before her.

“Anikihiko!” She squeaked and saw the bruise on her senior’s cheek. Before either of them could say anything, the entire group was welcomed by the sounds of loud cheering. 

“BETS ARE CLOSED! THE LAST ROUND WILL START IN TEN MINUTES! LUCKY 7S AND PINK LIPS! STEP UP!” The nerdy announcer and dealer declared loudly to everyone at the area.

As the crowds of delinquents cheered in excitement, the Lucky 7s got themselves ready for the coin flip. They packed up their things, combed their hair, brushed the wrinkles and dust off their outfits, and adorn themselves with their accessories. Kenichi fixed his ascot that complimented well with his pricy shirt and watch. Sochi unzipped his jacket to reveal his baseball jersey. Motoki donned a vibrant hair bandana that went well with his luxurious fringed locks while his best bro Taiga showed off his chains.

‘They look so cool…’ Chouko was mesmerized by the gang’s style. They all had something different that not only represent their respectable gang, but also themselves as an individual. Except her, who spent all night sketching out a pair of matching earrings that she hoped to wear when she’s fully initiated into the gang.

‘I wish I could show them my picture, and I wish I could be like them,’ Chouko observed her thuggish pals with quiet envy.

“Weeeewwwww! Now that’s what I call a wicked jacket!” The brunette snapped out from her trance to see what the boys were hooting at. They were in complete awe at what their redheaded leader wore. 

What use to be a simple gakuran blazer was reversed into a striking red jacket that had silver and gold assets. On the back was the gang’s insignia which had a pair of feathered wings indicating that said wearer is top guardian or protector of the entire crew. Then underneath it was the gang’s slogan “Earn Your Heaven” embroidered into the fabric. It was a flashy piece of clothing that was extremely well crafted, and it was all made possible by Chouko.

“So cool…” The brunette seamstress was stunned at her finished product. Seconds later, she was suddenly given a pat on the head by the owner of the jacket.

“You ready to smack some bitches again?” Akahiko asked teasingly with a grin, and the rest of the gang snickered at his comment.

The girl’s cheeks flared red. “Aww c’mon! It was not a smack, it was just a slap!” She told her crewmates who still could not believe that their delicate buddy slapped a sukeban.

Once the group’s laughter died down, both leaders of the gang looked over to their potential soldier.

“You ready?” A fancy ascot wearing Kenichi asked firmly.

“M-mhm…” Chouko’s heart raced as she and the crew walked towards the center of the gym area.

The group strutted through the crowds of roguish teenage spectators. The majority of them howled mockingly toward the boys while some of them whistled at Chouko. 

“Look at the Lucky 7s’ toy, she’s never going to win.”

“The Public Bicycle of that defunct school in Yo-City is going to be dead last.”

“That bitch is going to lose.”

The brunette glued her eyes to the ground. She wanted to listen to her walkman to soothe her nerves or at least mute out the noise that was only partially muffled by her earplugs, but that would be disgraceful to the other gangs and to the gang that was family to her. She concentrated on listening to her heartbeat.

_Dokidoki dokidoki dokidoki dokidoki._

**“Barabara?”** A voice echoed out reassuringly in Chouko’s head. It was the same exact voice that she heard on the roof and when she was in homeroom, but this time it sounded clearer.

‘I’m scared,’ She admitted in her head. ‘Am I fated to lose?’ The question reverberated in the girl’s mind, and the girl suddenly felt a sharp pinch in the skin of both her elbows. But no one pinched her. 

“Barabara,” The voice disagreed at the girl’s question. “Bara. Barabara barabara barabara barabara. Bara.” The voice emitted gibberish, but despite it being nonsense, the listener felt oddly comforted by it’s words of encouragement and care. 

Chouko’s heart twinged, and for just a short moment, the terrible background noises was gone from her head. She looked up to find herself and the Lucky 7s standing in front of the Pink Lips in all their lipstick and permed hair wearing glory. The sukeban group was massive in comparison to the former and all other gangs that were in the area. But that was because the Pink Lips leader Kaho bullied her female peers into her group as an attempt to mow down the competition for a handsome brute who broke her repulsive heart yesterday.

_“Ushirara. Ka-chan is crying,”_

_**‘LOVE ME JOJO! NOT THOSE BIG BOOBED LONG HAIRED BIMBOS!’** _

“LEADERS OF EACH GROUP AND THEIR PARTICIPATING SOLDIERS, STEP UP!” The nerdy announcer commanded at the top of his lungs.

Chouko and Akahiko walked towards the announcer while Kaho flounced over to them. As she walked alongside her senior, she noticed a familiar face standing beside the nerdy announcer. It was Urara whose chipper demeanor was replaced with a serious one. 

“So that’s Lady Luck,” One of her gang mates whispered, and then she felt a tap on the shoulder.

“You remember what you need to say?” Akahiko whispered to Chouko curiously, and she nodded.

“Introduce myself with my title and for the coin toss pick… What sides of the coin do I pick Akahiko?” She looked over to her leader nervously.

The redheaded teen smacked himself on the forehead. “Shit. We forgot about that!” He shouted in horror, and proceeded to think of quick answer. After making confusing mathematical equations in his head, the light bulb in his head sparked. “Pick tai-!” 

Right before he could finish his answer, the two teens finally reached the center of the ground, and watched as Kaho and Sawa flaunted over to them.

All of them stood in silence while exchanging looks to one another. Chouko looked tiredly at the Pink Lips group that stood a couple of inches away from their leaders. 99.5% of the girls looked miserable while the head leader had a smug smirk on her face, and her right hand pal cracked their knuckles cockily. 

‘How despicable…’ The false brunette was disgusted by the sukeban leaders who fated others into their ruthless clutches. Someone needed to break them especially Kaho, but who is willing to do that?

Urara walked in between the group of teens. “STATE OUT YOUR TITLES AND YOUR GANGS PLAYERS!” She shouted firmly.

“Kaho Shiokawa~! The Queen of the Pink Lips!” The permed haired sukeban shouted with a confident smirk, and was greeted with loud cheers from the audience.

Chouko took a deep breath. “Chouko Fukuyama! The Lucky 7s’ Maiden from Hell!” She introduced herself with a bold title.

The ponytail girl took out a couple of 100-yen coins from her pocket. She flipped each one in the air and caught them in her hand with ease. 

“RAISE THE STAKES FOR THIS GANG WAR OF YOURS LEADERS!” Urara called out to the leaders of each gang.

Akahiko placed his pair of gloves near _Lady Luck_ ’s feet. “Our safe haven.”

Urara and everyone else looked over to Kaho who bared her teeth weirdly. She pulled out a patch that had her gang’s kiss mark insignia on it.

“...My throne,” She huffed, and because she refused to place her emblem onto the ground, a small portion of the audience booed.

Urara took a deep breath, and flipped the coins again. “Heads,” She looked over to Kaho. “Tails?” She then turned her attention to Chouko, and seconds later, she flicked all seven 100-yen coins into the air.

“HEADS!”

“TAILS!”

The coins flipped in the air, and each one landed on the ground.

Tic! Tac! Tic! Tac! Tic! Tac! Tic!

Everyone was dead silent as Urara observed the coins on the ground. Six of them showed the engraved image of sakura flowers while one of them showed the 100 side of the coin.

“It’s…” 

<==To be Continued 7❀

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Irl has it's ups and downs, but I'm happy that I got to upload this chapter that's been stewing for way too long, and I'm sorry for the long wait. Anyway, some aspects of Chouko's past is being revealed bit by bit, and the next chapter is going to be fun to do! Thank you guys so much for reading and leaving kudos/comments, and stay tuned for the next track!
> 
> Trivia and notes:  
> -The song used for this chapter is Broken Eyes by Mariko Tone
> 
> -Took some liberties on giving a name and a bit of a backstory for the nurse from Stardust Crusaders. Thankfully, she's not waving a pen around... For now.
> 
> -Shipteases galore. Nothing too big, but it's there.
> 
> -Promide or Bromide is a category of promotional photos of celebrities and idols.
> 
> -Booby is a nickname that Akahiko and others gave to Sochi. How he got that name is one helluva story.
> 
> -Akahiko's jacket is based off on the one that Michael Jackson wore in the music video for Beat It. 
> 
> -The gibberish sentences from the bodiless voice are not actually gibberish. For now it's up to you to decipher what the voice is saying to Chouko.


	5. Summer is over but the story will continue/Author's note

Hey everyone! Hope you guys had a nice Summer and I apologize for the unexpected delay. I really believed that I could finish the next chapter quickly and complete the first arc of this story during the Summer, but things like writer’s block and other outside factors got the best of me during the past three months which left me bummed out. I really do not want to go into too much details about it, but rest assured, everything is alright now and the spark is back. Anyway, the next chapter is about 89% done, and will most likely be posted up in a couple of days. In the meantime and to ease the wait, [ take a gander at these shitty drawings that I did in the past for this story and that will show up in the next track](https://www.flickr.com/gp/164904959@N02/805192). Again, I apologize for the long wait and absence, it sucks that I missed out on updating during the summertime, but there’s always next time for a splurge of updates and drawings that reminds you readers of the season. Stay tuned for the next track!


	6. Track 5: Walk On By

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alright ladies and gents, the wait is over and the coins have finally been flipped by Lady Luck. Every punk is on pins and needles for this one, and so many things on the line for every hot-blooded hooligan. Whether it’s money or having a chance to dethrone a pesty queen, one fragile participant has a lot to accomplish especially if she wants to be part of a makeshift crew that’s made from the hardest earned luck. Don’t hesitate Loser. Hide those tears and sadness for now, and walk on by.
> 
> **Click**
> 
> Opening song for Chap 2-??: Break! Break! Tic! Tac! by Satelillte Young
> 
> Ending song for Chap 1-??: Here Comes That Sound Again by Love De-Luxe With Hawkshaw's Discophonia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Featured characters so far:  
> Chouko Fukuyama:  
> Alias: Doraecat (????), Public Bicycle (Really hates this one), Maid from Hell (for only 24 hours), Maiden from Hell (Lucky 7s)  
> -The Lucky 7s’ crew changed the Maid part into Maiden to make it sound more intimidating.
> 
> Hisao Akahiko:  
> Alias: Jackass (Former, The Raging Roids), Prince Peasant (An ‘affectionate’ nickname from an annoyingly ‘affectionate’ pest), Aces (Former title, Lucky 7s), Aniki, Anikihiko, ?????? (Current title, Lucky 7s)  
> -Got his former nickname for being the most reckless among the other Raging Roids members. Use to be called Aces, but after gaining his guardian status, he received a new title from his crew. However, he strongly prefers to be called Aniki.
> 
> Kenichi Hisaji  
> Alias: 21 (Lucky 7s), Fatty/Fatso (If you have a death wish)  
> -His name is based off from his favorite manga, Blackjack. He has another one, but that’s a well kept secret that even Akahiko doesn’t know about.
> 
> Urara Kotohime:  
> Alias: Lady Luck (Current), Ushirara (Hates this one)  
> -A wiz at winning big at Pachinko, Medal Coin and UFO catcher machines, and dealing games for different school gangs. But recently, she lost some credibility due to losing an arcade game to a boy who has an IQ of 190, and getting caught cheating in a round of poker. 
> 
> Sochi Okajima  
> Age: 16  
> Alias: Booby (Current, Lucky 7s), Pitch (Current, Lucky 7s)  
> -Got his nicknames after his initiation which ended with a destroyed bowling alley, a bunch of angry middle schoolers, and some of his crewmates (Akahiko, Motori, and Taiga) finding him all tied up in a dominatrix’s lair in Kabuchiko. Some of his crew and friends say he was never the same after that incident. 
> 
> Motori Kurue:  
> Age: 17  
> Alias: Speed (Current, Lucky 7s)  
> Got his title based on three facts. One; he dreams of working in a pit crew and loves racing more so than Akahiko. Two; Works fast especially if has to do with wiring. Three; he’s always with a different girl. One day he’s going out with the school’s star swimmer then two weeks later he’s with an office lady who loves to dance all night long. Good vocalist, but terrible lyricist.
> 
> Taiga Kyokutana:  
> Age: 17  
> Alias: Koi Koi (Current, Lucky 7s)  
> -Tough, but knows his way when it comes to serving food and drinks at an oden stand. Always eager for action, wooing cuties, and having a grand time. Has an affinity to ping pong and playing the bass. Doesn’t fully appreciate Akahiko’s vocals nor Motori’s lyrics though.

“Heads or tails?”

Every miscreant teen that was at the back of the gym were roused as they watched Urara, Lady Luck, flipping seven silver coins up into the air. So many things were riding on this coin flip. The juvenile spectators were hoping that their bets will win them the hefty cash prize and a carton of cigarettes that was provided by one of the delinquent gangs. Almost everyone was on edge as they saw two other gangs putting their honor and status on the line for a gang war game on Saturday which will determine who will be one of the top gangs of the entire campus. 

‘What do I pick?’ Beads of sweat were forming on Chouko’s forehead. Akahiko and Kenichi may have given her pointers on brawling, but they did not give her a clear idea on what side of the coin to pick. She recalled the redheaded boy saying “Tails”, but what were the odds that’s the winning side? And if she did win the coin toss, did she really want to get physical with a catty tyrant who has a reputation of breaking their female classmates to the point of submission?

‘I’m not good with my fists,’ She glanced down at her scarred hands briefly. ‘But I am definitely good at that,’ A spark of confidence formed in her chest, but it was quickly smouldered by her doubts.

‘But what side of the coin do I pick? Akahiko said tails, so maybe that’s the winner side… But what if it’s wrong?’ Her heart felt like it was about to burst out of her chest. Her forehead furrowed as the beads of sweat rolled down from her face. “T-” She was about to open her mouth, but she closed it back shut. 

The minutes went by slowly, but for the loser with a lonely heart, it felt like time was moving too fast, and sadly, there was no way for her to slow it down or to even catch up with it.

‘If I pick wrong, I will lose everything and they will lose everything because of me… What do I do?’ She closed her tired eyes shut as she gripped onto the helms of her skirt. Her erratic heartbeat and the muffled thoughts of others flooded her ears. The foreboding ambience and warmth of summertime almost lulled her into a dream like state, but then out of nowhere, she heard a familiar melody in the distance. 

_P...ve...y..r...lf!_

Feeling something weird pinching her elbows, she opened her eyes wide. “HEADS!” She shouted which caught delinquents like Akahiko, Kenichi, and the other Lucky 7s mates by surprise.

“T-TAILS!” A startled Kaho screamed out as well.

Tic! Tac! Tic! Tac! Tic! Tac! Tic!

Everyone fell silent as the silver coins fall onto the ground. Urara crouch down to observe the coins on the ground. One coin landed with the 100 side of the face up, but the rest landed with the engraved sakura flower side. The ponytail girl stood up, and pointed her hand towards Chouko.

“IT’S HEADS! LUCKY 7S’ MAIDEN OF HELL GETS TO CHOOSE THEIR WAR GAME!” Urara declared to the audience who were both visibly and vocally flabbergasted by the outcome of the coin flip.

“UGHHHHHH! WE NEEDED THAT MOOLAH YA ASSHOLES~!” One of the audience members cried out in anger, and the rest of the spectators followed suit. Some looked like they wanted to beat the living daylights out of their gangmates for losing the bet. A few were crying over the fact they lost their allowance money, and one single person from a two bit gang was dancing like a prospector who just struck gold.

Motori and Taiga held each other by their shoulders. “AKAHIKO’S SMOKE STASH AND OUR ALLOWANCE! WE’RE SO DEAD!” The latter cried with snot and tears gushing out of his nose and eyes. 

“And we’re poor! We’re going to die poooooooor~!” Motori cried with his crew-cut haired bud.

Kenichi’s ears perked up from overhearing the two sobbing boys. “You two did what?” He glared sternly which made the two yelp in fear. 

While the ducktail teen continued to press the two guys to spill the beans, a relieved Akahiko and a dancing Sochi watched over Chouko who was shocked by what just happened.

‘I won…?’ She blinked and lowered her eyes to the coins on the ground. 6 out of the 7 coins landed with the sakura flower side up. Just like the rowdy audience and two of her crewmates, she could not believe that her last minute choice was the winning pick. But that moment of disbelief was replaced with a giddy sensation that uplifted her spirit.

Her lips widened into a goofy smile. “I won!” She hopped with glee, but her moment of happiness was quickly shot down by a sound that was mixed between a dental drill and the whining cries of a mosquito’s wings.

“ **Viiviiiviiivii…** ” She briefly looked over to Kaho. They were gritting their teeth as they stared heavily at the coins on the ground. It’s obvious that they were furious about losing the coin toss and not getting to choose the war game for her gang, but something about the air around them made Chouko’s hair stand on end. 

**ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ**

**‘FUCKING COIN TOSS! DUMBASS SAWA! SHE DIDN’T HIT USHIRARA HARD ENOUGH! NOW I HAVE TO DEAL WITH THAT COW, PUBLIC BICYCLE, AND THEN THAT BIKE’S ORGE SISTER!’’**

Chouko’s dull eyes darkened at what she just heard. “What did you say about Urara and my sister?” She questioned Kaho, but all she got from them was an icy glare so sharp that it could stab someone where the sun does not shine.

**ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ ゴゴゴゴゴゴ**

“I didn’t say shit about Urara or Mariya idiot,” Kaho stated coldly with a raised fist that made Chouko flinch. The pest was lying through their drill-like teeth, but no one else but the cowardly false brunette knows about it, and it would take a miracle to get the parasite to fess up.

“Fucking Public Bicycle,” Kaho cursed under her breath as she stomped off to her crew. **‘USHIRARA YOUR LUCK IS ABOUT TO RUN OUT!’** The sukeban’s vicious words boomed through Chouko’s skull. 

‘It’s hopeless...’ A familiar despairing voice repeated it’s desolate mantra, but the fact the coin toss landed in the girl’s favor made her question the voice’s incantation. 

‘Is it really all that hopeless?’ She cast her tired eyes down to her school slippers. Just like her, they were worn out and were about to break from stress. However, unlike the slippers on her feet, she has a chance to stand up against the pink lipped tyrants and break their hive-mind torment before they could even break her.

“Lucky 7s’ Maiden of Hell,” Chouko turned over to her ponytail classmate Urara who had a lady-like smile on their face. “What is your game of choice?” They asked, and before the winner of the toss could even speak, both girls were quickly swarmed by a scourge of permed haired pests. This lead the Lucky 7s gang and the nerdy announcer to run over to the girls’ aid, and the audience screaming for a bloody battle. 

“THIS WHOLE COIN TOSS IS BULLSHIT! THAT BITCH IS A CHEATER!” Sawa shouted as she and the other girls try to squirm through Kenichi, Motori, Taiga, and the nerdy dealer who were blocking them from trying to harm the two girls. 

Urara sighed heavily. “No, it’s not,” She turned away from Chouko to face the pink lipped delinquents and stomped towards them. The Lucky 7s, Chouko, and everyone else in the area watched Urara in awe. If she truly had the luck and blessings of a goddess, then it is likely they had the wrath and vengeance of one too.

The ponytail lass gave a steely glare at the all-female clique. “Six coins. Six coins landed in the Lucky 7s’ favor while only one supported your gang’s dirty deeds!” She snapped at the massive sukeban who was still trying to go through the human made barrier.

“I’ve been given the name Lady Luck by my senpai because I am totally blessed, and you questioning my title brings shame to my senpai which in turn brings shame to moi!” She continued angrily, and for a split second, she looked over to the nerdy dealer that was part of the barrier to keep the pests from pouncing on her. There was a hint of sadness in her cornflower blue eyes as she gazed at her nerdy elder. But due to being in an area full of hardened punks, she hid those unrequited feelings behind an icy hardened glare that can smash through diamonds. 

“You lost Pink Lips. So quit being a couple of sore hosers and take your fate with a kiss. Especially you Sawabobo!” Urara finished boldly and walked back to the winner of the coin toss.

Sawa clenched her teeth to the point that one of her molars cracked from the pressure. “EAT SHIT AND DIE USHIRARA!” The hulkish sukeban elbowed Taiga in the gut, stomped on Kenichi’s foot, and pushed the other two boys away from her sight. 

“URARA GET OUT OF THE WAY!” The nerdy dealer screamed out to his fellow junior, but the latter refused to budge from their spot. It was as if they already resigned to their fate of getting their face smashed in by a sadistic huma-

“NO!” Chouko pushed Urara out of harm’s way. She heard the voices of her schoolmates calling out to her, but sadly, their cries were not enough to save her from Sawa’s wrath. 

Her legs felt like they were chained to the ground. _‘It’s hopeless… Just like before… This is fate. I deserve this.’_ The despairing voice in her mind repeated it’s twisted mantra again. 

‘N-no. No. I don’t think it’s hope-’ She tried to defy the voice that was keeping her down, but a sudden sharp pain in her heart put her to a full stop. _‘We’ll meet again tomorrow right?’_ A nostalgic voice echoed as faint memories of bygone happiness and painful losses resurfaced in her head. She welded her teary eyes shut, and as she awaited for the hulkish sukeban’s brutal assault, the sounds of squealing females erupted in the area. 

“KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH~ IT’S JOJO!” 

“JoJo.”

‘Kujo?’ Chouko opened her eyes to see that Sawa’s fist was just inches away from her face.

“JoJo.” 

She slowly looked over to what Sawa was looking at. The latter was distracted by the sight of their perm haired leader and their cohorts flocking over to Jotaro who just happen to be passing by the area.

“ **JoJo** ,” The sukeban repeated in a disgruntled snort. Just like their leader, the atmosphere around them felt extremely foreboding, and by instinct Chouko receded away like a frightened animal. But when she took a single step back, she received a swift kick in the torso that knocked the slippers off her feet and the earplugs out of her ears.

“WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAA!” The wild cries of the juvie crowd echoed through the area. Some roared in delight at the sight of violence, some booed at Sawa’s disgraceful act, and then there were some that were crying in the distance. The hollering continued, and both the Lucky 7s and the game dealers sprung into action. Akahiko reprimanded the beefy Sawa by hooking his arms under hers. Then Motori restrained the sukeban in the front while Soichi hopped off of the glamour teen’s back, and headbutted the permed girl square in the nose. As the boys restrain the ruthless female delinquent, Kenichi, Taiga, Urara, and the nerdy dealer ran over to Chouko who laid motionless on the ground.

**‘Weew that bitch went flying!’**

‘ **Damn that loser can take a beating! No wonder the Lucky 7s have her around!’**

**‘Ushirara was so brave and so is that weirdo from the roof!’**

**‘That girl from yesterday protected that Ushirara chick… Maybe she can help us…’**

**‘Please get up! Please!’**

**‘HELP US!’**

**__** _‘Help me…’_

**“Bara!”**

“ **C...HO...KO!** ” A voice called out to her, but because of her ears being exposed, it sounded distant and broken thanks to the influx of everyone’s thoughts that was streaming through her ears. She fluttered her eyes open. Everything before her dull green eyes was spinning. The sukeban’s kick packed a punch, but strangely, her assault and the rough landing felt nothing but dull hard jabs to the receiver. Chouko closed her eyes shut again. Maybe this was one of the perks from her unspoken condition, but truthfully, it was more of a curse from down below rather than a blessing from high above.

 _“What happened to your hand?”_ A vision of a cherry red boy enveloped in her mind faintly. It was vivid, but unfortunately, the face of the boy was a blur. It made her wonder why these memories were resurfacing just now. 

“ **BARABARA!** ” The staticy voice cried out and a sharp jolt of energy surged throughout Chouko’s nerves. Just like her body crashing onto the dirt, realization struck her hard. ‘June 18…’ Today’s date was extremely important. Not only it was the day of the declared turf war between two rivaled gangs, it was also the anniversary of how she became a loser in the first place.

 _“N-nothing! It’s doesn’t hurt at all!”_ She winced at hearing a pitiful excuse from an equally pitiful human being. She wheezed out for air and struggled to sit herself up. Then without her knowing, someone placed their warm hands on top of her shoulders.

She blushed when she realized whose hands it was. “Take it easy Cho-chan...” Kenichi told her calmly, and with the help of him and the others, she finally got up on her feet.

“LET GO OF ME YOU FUCKING DICKHEAD!” Chouko and the others turned their attention to a nosebleeding Sawa who was struggling from Akahiko’s ever-tightening grip. The color in the Lucky 7s gang faces’ drained when they spotted an alarming expression on their leader’s face. 

Akahiko continued to hook his arms under Sawas’. “And let a disgraceful neanderthal like you go scot-free? **Fuck no** , **I’m gonna pave the road with that fossil face of yours,** ” The red headed leader of the Lucky 7s stated which left his crewmates petrified and Sawa to grit her teeth in fear. 

**‘The bitch’s not worth it right now! Don’t do it!’**

**‘Dammit aniki no!’**

**‘If he gets into another fight on campus…’**

**‘It’ll be all over for us.’**

Chouko clenched onto the helms of her skirt. ‘They’re right…’ She agreed with the inner thoughts of her crewmates. ‘If Anikihiko gets caught fighting, he’ll be kicked out and lose everything!’ She gripped onto the skirt’s fabric tightly. She welded her eyes shut, and her heart pounded in fear of inevitable outcome.

**_Prove yourself!_ **

‘You are the move you make. **Take your chances. Win or loser** ~’ A verse from her favorite song sang in her head. The words were simple, but it was more than enough to give her that needed push. 

Chouko took a deep breath. “PINFINGER!” She screamed at the top of her lungs which drew in everyone’s attention including the infuriated Akahiko. 

The redheaded punk dropped Sawa like a sack of rotten fruit. “What?” He looked over to his junior dumbfoundedly.

“Oomph!” Sawa grunted. The beefy female delinquent was spared by the loser whom she hated for superficial reasons. But unfortunately for them, that said loser’s action was not to spare them from a gruesome five-finger discount makeover. It was actually for the well-being of the Lucky 7s leader and for their sake as well.

“Pinfinger…” Chouko turned over to an equally perplexed Urara. “That’s my game of choice!” She declared with a slap to the chest.

***

The sea of hoodlums shrank as last 20 minutes of lunchtime roll by. The only people that remained in the back area of the gymnasium were the Lucky 7s leader, deputy, and their potential inductee. The rest of the crew left to meet up with the nerdy announcer to collect the money prize and the carton of cigarettes that the shortest member of the group had won from the coin toss.

“I expected lunchtime to be a shitshow, but I’m relieved that it was not a total shitshow,” Kenichi exhaled in relief as he held a lit cigarette between his fingers. Him alongside his two chums were resting against the school’s concrete wall that was covered in graffiti. Some of which were freshly drawn by the gang’s _‘Maiden from Hell’_.

Chouko was half-asleep as she scribbled the wall with drawings and the gang’s tag. While she was happy about the outcomes from the coin toss, she was still heartbroken by the fact that she lost her sketchbook. She tried her best to tag the wall with the Lucky 7s’ insignia, but all her efforts were dampened by the loss of her prized possession.

“Nah, don’t be so gloomy Cho-chan. Aniki and me will be on the lookout for it,” Kenichi told her as he observed the drawings on the wall. One of them made his throat tickle, but he did his best to remain composed. 

“Thanks Hisaji-kun…” Chouko mumbled, and felt her eyelids getting heavier. The lack of a good night rest and the latest events were really starting to get to her. 

_‘Are you tired?’_ A familiar pathetic voice questioned her again. She shook her head, and turned the volume up on her walkman. She hoped that the songs from her mixtape would keep her from passing out and to mute out the terrible thought noise, but unfortunately, the current track was lulling her into a deep slumber.

_“Hm...Hm…Hm…Hm...Hm…”_

“Zzzzzz…” She puffed and tilted her head against the wall. Both her friends observed her display of lethargy. 

“Zzzzzz…” As she fell asleep, Akahiko looked over her ridiculous sleeping form. He surveyed the scars that were tattooed on her skin. They were fading bit by bit, but then he spotted the bandaid on her finger. His lips and eyebrows crinkled at the sight of the bandaid.

He fished out his carton of cigarettes from his gakuran jacket’s sleeve. Inside the box was only one stick, and because Sochii won his entire smoke stash, he has to wait for a couple of months to purchase a carton like that from the local smoke shop or to win from an ever-rigged pachinko machine. A delinquent like him would save the last cigarette for a rainy day, but because he was tensing up, he needed something quick to ease his nerves.

He stuck the cigarette into his mouth. “Maybe we can postpone the match and redo the coin toss again,” he proposed, and was oblivious by the fact that his cigarette was upside down. There was an optimistic smile plastered on his face, but that was quickly obliterated by his deputy’s stony expression.

Kenichi crossed his arms. “Aniki…” The ducktail boy trailed off with a frown. “You know damn well that’s impossible...” He returned gruffly, and as much as Akahiko wanted to disagree, the redhead knew that his best friend was right. 

The coins were flipped. The game of choice is set in stone. And the news about the turf war is already spreading like wildfire among other school gangs including the top dogs that reigned from different prefectures and towns. Everything was set in motion. However, things were not going as what Akahiko had hoped for, and it was all because of one selfless maiden. 

“Zzzzz…” Akahiko listened to his junior’s soft snoring, and laid his head back against the wall. He began to light up his cigarette. After giving the thing a couple of flicks, he threw the cheap device onto the ground which startled the drowsy girl. 

“Fuck’n A! I almost shat a brick from what that cunt did to you! And pinfinger?! We told you to pick fisticuffs!” He snapped at the brunette who was flabbergasted at the latest drawing she did on the wall. Her latest masterpiece was a depiction of Akahiko wearing a crown, and pulling down his lower eyelid while sticking out his tongue. 

“Pfft…” Akahiko looked over to Kenichi who had covered his mouth to mask his weird coughing. The sole inspiration for the piece of artwork was not impressed at the slightest. 

“MWYAAAAAAAAWWWW! OWAH! OWAH! OWAH! OWAH! OWAH! OWAH!” Chouko yelped as Akahiko pinched her cheeks. The redheaded punk always had a habit of pinching and stretching her cheeks out as if it was a sticky piece of mochi or rice cake. It was his method to cheer her up, snap her out of a funk, or to mess with her if she did something stupid. Thankfully, it did not hurt her, but the way his hands trembled concerned her. 

Chouko began to pry the boy’s hands away from her cheeks. “I’mwh sowwy for whwat hwappened awt lwunch! Bwut Awniwkihwikwo!~” She cried out to him.

“I don’t want to hear it!” Akahiko averted his eyes away like a child who refused to listen to their doting parent. This left the brunette no choice, but to stoop to his level. She reached over and softly placed her hands onto the sides of his face. He froze at the gentleness of her touch. 

“OWAAAAAAAAH! ITETETETETETETETETE! ITEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! CHWOOUKWOOO!” The redhead delinquent yowled as if his junior was pinching his very soul. 

“LWET GWOH!”

“YWOH FWIRST!”

The two continued their squabble, and after watching them fight by squeezing and stretching at each other’s faces, Kenichi smothered his spent cigarette onto the gravel. Once he put out his cigarette, he separated the two by stepping in between them. 

“Cho-chan, let go of Aniki’s cheek or you’ll worsen his bruise,” Kenichi ordered calmly, and as the girl complied to his request, Akahiko lets go of her cheeks. 

The ducktail teen then turned his attention to Akahiko. “Aniki, let’s hear what Cho-chan has got to say,” He urged his redheaded friend sternly, and beckoned his brunette junior to speak by nodding his head.

Chouko rubbed her cheeks, and bowed to the two boys in a 45 degree angle. “I’m sorry!” She apologized with a deep bow. “I’m sorry for being stupid and scaring you guys at lunch!” She admitted to her seniors earnestly. 

“But Akahiko…” She gripped at the helms of her skirt, and rose her head up to face her seniors with a faltering glare. 

‘If I didn’t do anything Urara would get hurt, and you would-’ She wanted to be honest to him, but the way he was currently acting proves that he knows the painful truth; if he gets caught in a full blown brawl at school again, he will be kicked out of Murasaki High and the Lucky 7s would be lost without his support. 

‘You’ve done so much for me and the others... If you get into a fight and get kicked out, everyone will lose and I can’t forgive myself if that happened!’ Chouko clenched onto her skirt tightly. She had to think of another reason to convince him and fast. 

“YOU GOT TO REALIZE THAT I SUCK AT FIGHTING AND WOULD LOSE EVERYTHING IF I PICKED FISTICUFFS!” She professed so loudly that it shocked the two boys.

A somewhat stunned Akahiko picked his cigarette and lighter off the ground. “You just need practice,” His response made Chouko and Kenichi facepalm. The redhead’s straight-forward answer had credibility, but due to their current situation that said solution was improbable, and the stubborn redheaded leader knows this. 

Chouko watched as Akahiko put his cigarette back in his mouth. Just like before, the thing was upside down. ‘My, my, he did it again. He’s going to hurt himself!’ She winced as the redhead flicked his lighter for a spark. It was a rare sight to see him make a foolish mistake like that twice, and there was a story behind that silly habit of his. A retired Lucky 7s member once said that he does that to his cigarettes when he’s worried about his nakama or his gangmates’ wellbeing. 

_“Even though he hates it, I think that’s one of his best traits and I love him for that!_ ” She remembered the former crewmate’s smile as they gushed over their beloved sweetly. 

A giggle escaped Chouko lips, and her tiny laughter drew the boys’ attention. “Sis is right about you Akahiko,” Chouko reached over to pull the cigarette out of Akahiko’s mouth. “You’re cute when you’re worried about us!” She teased, and he immediately swipe his smoke out of her hand.

“....” The redhead gave a dirty look at his junior, and then he heard a small chuckle from his ducktail pal. 

“Heh. It never really crossed my mind that you were the sensitive type aniki, but nonetheless I’m deeply touched.”

“W-wha?” Akahiko looked at Kenichi who was looking up at the sky with a small smile. The former stashed the cigarette back into his pant’s pocket, and masked the lower part of his face that was singeing red. 

“S-shit… Did Mariya told you guys about the cigarette thing or is it that obvious?” He grumbled slowly in defeat. 

Chouko and Kenichi chuckled as Akahiko sulked in shame. Then seconds later, someone gently placed their hand on the redhead’s shoulder.

“Hisao…” Chouko called out to him who winced at the sound of his first name. It’s known among his crew that he loathed his name, but his reason behind it was shrouded in mystery. Despite it being an enigma, it can be used against him. However that weapon is only reserved for his nakama, and used when they needed him the most.

“You and Kenichi know that I’m not good at fighting like Sis and the others yet, but both of you know that I’m good at pinfinger,” She told her perplexed leader. “And heaven knows that I can win you that pest’s throne by playing it against her. So please Hisao, have faith in me,” She pleaded and as she braced herself for a verbal backlash, she was welcomed by the usual rub on the head.

Akahiko perched his hand on top of her head. “I always have faith in you. Don’t ever think otherwise,” His response left her speechless, and he pulled his hand away from her.

He balled his hands tightly into fists. “But if you lose or go back to your habit then I can’t forgiv-” He struggled with a frustrated frown, but ultimately, he was cut off by his junior. 

“I won’t go back!” Chouko reached out and clasped onto one of Akahiko’s hands. His palm was calloused and rough, but just like his sincere desire of safeguarding others, it was warm and soft. Unlike hers that were tarnished and hideous to touch to so many. 

“I won’t go back…” She repeated as she held his hand comfortingly. “Once I win this and fully be apart the Lucky 7s, there’s no reason for me to do that to myself anymore. I swear it will be the end, I swear it,” she vowed with determined eyes. She gazed firmly at her conflicted senior, and without the former’s knowledge, he sneakily pinched her cheek with his free hand.

“Owah!” She cried out. While the pinch did not exactly hurt her, it did caught her off guard. 

A roguish grin spread across Akahiko’s face. “Swearing at others isn’t like you. Vowing to others is, and those are always worth keeping,” he teased as he lets go of her cheek.

Feeling a sense of relief, Chouko’s lips curved into a tender smile, and exchanged laughter with the redheaded teen. Kenichi smiled contently at the sight, and was happy by the fact that his leader allowed the possible addition to the crew to blossom on her own terms.

“That reminds me. Can you do me a solid and buy me some smokes later? Just add that to my tab for the mitts and the jacket.”

“Okay, but it’s going to be 20,000 yen.”

“20,000!?”

“Okay, I’ll make it better. 15,000 yen.”

“O-oi Cho-chan… You’re suppose to go higher not lower.”

~~~~~~~

-3:45 PM-

The sun was setting, and the blue skies were turning into a summery mix of violet and orange. The campus of Murasaki High was almost empty, and only a few students remained in the area. In one of the many classrooms, two students were in their homeroom class. The sun’s rays gave the room a pleasant orange glow, the air smelt of cleaning liquid, and on top of an open window sill was a vase that held a makeshift bouquet of dandelion flowers and a single white chrysanthemum.

“Aughhh, sucks that we’re the only ones stuck with cleaning duty,” Urara groaned as she swept the floor with a broom while Chouko was rubbing the chalk board clean with a towel. 

The two were assigned to clean their classroom. The chore was suppose to be a group effort, but unfortunately, their classmates ditched last minute, and that left them to clean the entire room by themselves. But despite being shorthanded, they made the most of it by listening to songs from a portable radio that one of the girls borrowed from the head nurse.

_If you see me walking down the street and I start to cry each time we meet._

“Walk on by… Walk on by…” Urara sang along while sweeping the floor, and with a twirl of the broom, she beckoned Chouko to sing the next verse.

“M-make believe that you don’t see the tea-…” The brunette joined in hesitantly, and bit her tongue by accident. She hid her blunder by facing the chalkboard.

Urara giggled. “Awwww, why’d you stop? It was getting good!” She urged Chouko to continue, but the latter shook her head sheepishly. But despite being bashful, the latter enjoyed Urara’s company. They were like two sides of a coin. One side they were steely and stouthearted against those who impose them while the other side is affable and sparkling towards many. They were striking and cool, just like the outfits and personalities that both her friends, bullies, and strangers wore which the brunette deeply admired.

***

After a couple of songs, the entire room was spotless thanks to the efforts of the two girls. Urara sighed in relief at the fact that they were finally done while Chouko smiled in satisfaction at the cleanliness of the room. They put away the cleaning equipment away, and began to pack up there things in their schoolbags.

“Oh, that reminds me. Can I see your sketchbook again? I want to have a closer look at those earrings you drew!” 

Chouko turned to Urara with a ghastly look on her face. “I don’t have it…I lost it,” she muttered gloomily, and instantly felt like her world was crumbling before her. All her hard work gone and most likely forever stuck in an unknown abyss that is filled with other missing appendages.

“Do you remember the last time you had it?” Urara asked which snapped the brunette out of her depressive imagination.

“I think it was Nurse Kanebo’s office…” 

“Then I’ll see if Kanebo-san has it,” Urara gave her a thumbs up while turning off the aforementioned nurse’s radio. “It shouldn’t be too hard to find a sketchbook!” She stated confidently as she slid the classroom’s door open.

“See you tomorrow morning!” Urara hurried out of the room, but before she could leave, her classmate called out to her. 

“I’ll wait for you outside the shoe lockers,” Chouko told them kindly. She did not want Urara to leave by their self, not because it was scary to leave campus alone, but because of an unspoken threat from a certain queen bee. 

**‘USHIRARA YOUR LUCK IS ABOUT TO RUN OUT!’** The menacing words of Kaho echoed, and the desolate faces of some of her cohorts haunted Chouko’s mind. **‘HELP US!’** The pleas of the girls who were shackled to a terrible fate reverberated, and all the hearer of their unlistened cries could do right now was clenched onto the fabric of her skirt. 

‘I got to win on Saturday. I just got too...’ Chouko told her self as she saw her classmate smiling amiably to their self.

“Mon dieu… It’s so hard to believe that you’re a part of the Lucky 7s, let alone a sukeban like those pink pests or the gals that I’ve met,” Urara stated with a laugh which made Chouko’s cheeks flush red. Her classmate was right though. She did not exactly fit the delinquent bill aside from tagging walls, sneaking cigs through her cleavage or skirt pockets, and smacking others when needed. In fact, she fits more of a maid that cooks, cleans, complete errands, and mends clothing for a makeshift gang that welcomed her with open arms. 

Urara sighed lightly. “Then again, looks can be deceiving, and seeing that leader of yours has angel wings on his jacket, you guys must definitely be the whole package!” She exclaimed weirdly in joy, and then she gave a thumbs up to Chouko.

“I’ll see you in a bit then Chouko-chan!” 

“Mhm, see you later Urara-chan.”

The two girls parted ways for a bit. After watching Urara head off to the infirmary, something in the room caught Chouko’s attention. At the windowsill was the class’s flower vase, and before she could put it on top of the teacher’s desk, she saw something crawling on top of the flower bouquet. It was a single Monarch butterfly, but instead of orange wings it was pink. Did the poor thing land in cans of paint or was it a new subspecies? Either way, the bug left the girl petrified. 

“S-shoo! S-shoo!” Chouko lightly flapped her hands to get the thing to fly away. She was never good with insects, and butterflies were no exception. Even though they were considered to be beautiful and beneficial to plants, she still found them terrifying and would rather jump off a high tower than to touch or to kill one. 

*Flutter* *Flutter* *Flutter*

“De-eugh…!” She backed away as the insect hovered towards her. Just like the pitiful coward that she is, she froze as it landed on her nose. She shut her eyes to avoid looking straight at the bug’s face. ‘Please don’t bite! Please don’t bite!’ She begged for mercy and a weird scent filled her nostrils. 

“Aachoo!” She sneezed, but the butterfly flew off right before the girl’s harsh exhale. After being teased by the bug, it flew out of the window. 

Chouko watched as it fluttered off into the distance. Even though she disliked the weird colored papillon’s antics, there was this tender need of hers to watch it go off on its journey to parts unknown. She had a habit of welcoming her love ones, and watching them go on their own ventures is no different. However, something about watching a lone butterfly fly off into the sunset colored sky felt incredibly odd to someone who has strong fear of creepy-crawlies.

“Aachoo!” Her nose tickled again. That weird scent from earlier still lingered in her nostrils. It smelt salty and sweet, like ocean water and soap. She rubbed her nose again and saw that the butterfly was nowhere to be seen. 

‘Must be the cleaning solution… I hope I’m not allergic to it,’ she grabbed the flower vase, and closed the window shut.

~~~~~~~

-4:20 PM-

Outside of the shoe lockers, Chouko stood under the awning. She tapped the tip of her scuffed leather loafer to the beat of the music that was playing in her walkman. Fifteen minutes have already pass by, and Urara has not yet returned from her trip to the infirmary. 

‘Her shoes were still in her locker,’ she fished out a piece of her favorite bubblegum from her bag. ‘I should go check to see if she’s okay,’ she popped the candy in her mouth, and right before she went back inside of the school building, someone approached her from behind.

“Oi.” A booming voice echoed through her music. She immediately swallowed her gum in fear that it was a teacher who has an axe to grind with gum chewing teenagers. “I...I was not chewing gum at all sir…” She spoke, and slowly turned her whole body around to face who it was. Fortunately, it was not a faculty member, but unluckily, it was someone who is far more scarier than any teacher.

Standing before her with piercing blue eyes was none other than Jotaro Kujo. This was the third time she crossed paths with the notorious freshman, and the second time she met him without his groupies that would give any bystander the third degree. But like all the other encounters, his presence was giving her the heebie-jeebies. 

‘I wish it was a teacher,’ she looked towards the brooding boy nervously. He wore his usual scowl on his chiseled face, but his right cheek was bandaged up with gauze and medical tape. It’s likely he got his injury from a fight, but whomever it was that challenged him is either going to have their meals through a straw or they actually came out smelling like roses with just a couple of bruises and some internal bleeding.

‘I don’t even know if that person is a winner or a loser in that situation…’ Chouko pondered bewilderingly, and realizing that she was staring at him like a slack-jawed bimbette, she immediately lowered her eyes to the ground. 

“Hey.” She heard him again, but she refused to speak or look at him in the eye. Instead she stared at the boy’s shoes silently. It was a pair of finely crafted loafers, and judging by the quality of the leather, it was obviously expensive. Not only his shoes looked pricy, his entire ensemble also looked like it would leave a poor soul in debt for an eternity if that said someone somehow got it ruined.

“Hey, can you even hear me with that shit on your ears?” Jotaro asked her gruffly, and slowly extend his hand out to her. But once his hand loomed over her head, she backed away from him. 

“I can hear you just fine Kujo!” She glowered tearfully and held her headphones close to her ears. While she did not mind having her headpats from her friends and family, she did mind having her headphones yanked off her ears. The last time someone pulled that stunt on her was back in middle school, and they received the most terrible punishment that even she and her senior pals think is extremely heinous.

“Tch.” Jotaro withdrew his hand, and that’s where Chouko spotted something familiar in his grasp. It was a brown book with a yellow ribbon wedged within the pages. Joy erupted in the girl’s chest at the sight of her prized sketchbook, but because she yelled at him, she felt awful instantly. 

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to raise my voice at you Kujo-san.” She bowed her head in shame, and slowly, she looked up to meet the boy’s face. He was still glaring at her, and she could not blame him if he was mad. However, there was a calmness in his eyes that possibly hinted that he was not completely irritated by her.

“....” 

Silence began to form like water freezing in winter, and because the owner of the sketchbook did not want things to be awkwardly frightening between them anymore, she broke the ice.

“Are you returning that to me?” Chouko asked her fellow freshman calmly, and they simply thrust the book back into her hands.

Jotaro pulled the end of his hat over his eyes. “Good grief, what else do you think I’ve been trying to do?” He answered harshly while his cheek ached from being punched by an aggressive pink lipped primate. 

The abrasiveness in his tone made Chouko laugh nervously. “M-my, my, I see!” She squeaked with a wavering smile. She was still afraid of him, but the fact that he went his way to return her book to her eased some of her fears about him. Before she could even thank him for his kindness, someone bolted out of the shoe lockers’ entrance. It was none other than Urara with her schoolbag in hand, and straight away, she stepped in front of Chouko.

Dropping her schoolbag onto the ground, Urara pulled out a yo-yo from her skirt’s pocket. “Hey, you better not be bullying her JoJo,” She hissed as she shot daggers at the tall raven haired teen.

Jotaro lowered his eyebrows at Urara. “Stupid bitch. Are you looking for a fight?” He fumed, and Urara replied by spinning her yo-yo straight into the air. Both Jotaro and Chouko stared at the toy, and they were speechless at the sight. It looked like a cross between a cutesy toy marketed towards little girls, and something straight out of a medieval armory.

‘How on earth did she get that thing!?’ Chouko was baffled at what Urara had in their seifuku while almost forgetting the fact the latter deals with unsavory delinquents and their money on a regular basis. Before things turned into a full-blown bloody battle, she stepped in front of Urara, and shielded Jotaro with her sketchbook in her hands.

“Kujo is not bullying me!” Chouko announced out loud, and Urara took notice of the book in her hands instantly.

Urara spun her yo-yo downwards. “Oh. So it was a misunderstanding?” She inquired, and Chouko nodded their head rapidly as a ‘yes’. The icy glare on her face melted as she spun her yo-yo back and forth with ease. Once she wound her toy back into her hand, she bonked Chouko on the head. 

“Mon dieu! You really got to say things sooner! Sorry about that JoJo!” She apologized with a laugh, and both girls dashed off to the school’s main gate.

As they head to towards the exit, Chouko stopped and turned to see that Jotaro was still standing at his spot. 

> [ ](https://www.flickr.com/gp/164904959@N02/91d7jw)

Was he waiting for a friend to walk home with or was he going to smoke before leaving like a lone wolf? It was hard to say, but that did not deter her from waving goodbye with a grateful smile.

> [ ](https://www.flickr.com/gp/164904959@N02/9401D3)

A small gust of wind blew into the courtyard, but this time, it was pleasant. ‘Thank you and see you tomorrow,’ she looked at Jotaro softly, and left the premises with Urara. 

<==To be Continued 7❀

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many apologies for making you guys wait for so long! I hope that the length and the contents of this chapter along makes up for the delay. As for drawings, I’ll post the completed pic and the bonus art in this chapter later this week since I made you guys wait too long and the unbearable hot weather is making my sweaty hand stick to the tablet > <;. 
> 
> Anyway, we saw some aspects and developments in relationships along with a full-on encounter between Jotaro and Chouko, and a cameo of someone who will appear soon. The next two chapters will mark the half of the story’s first arc, and I can’t wait to do those! Thank you guys for being so patient along with giving kudos, views, and comments along the way. Those are always appreciated and it always cheers me up when I look back at them. Thank you guys again, and stay tuned for the next track!
> 
> Notes and Trivia
> 
> -The song used for the title of this chapter is Walk On By by Dionne Warwick. There are different covers to this wonderful song. The ones that really stood out to me is the Beach Boys’s partial demo of it which can be found on their album 20/20 (Brian Wilson’s vocals really tugs the heartstrings), and Jo Jo Zep’s rendition which I lowkey think that and the Beach Boys’s covers fits well with some of the moods in the story. Another version that’s also great is Issac Hayes’s variation which is an extremely smooth tune to listen throughout the end. Definitely give these a listen along with the original, and feel free to comment which version you guys like!
> 
> -The crewmates’ titles are based off of card games. These will actually change overtime though.
> 
> -The gesture that Chouko used for her drawing of Akahiko is known as Akanbe which is used as a taunt. This gesture can be seen in a variety of mangas and animes.
> 
> -There are different types of bowing or ojigi to show respect toward others. The one that Chouko uses is Saikeirei which is used to show respect towards someone of high status or to deeply express one’s guilt or apology.
> 
> -Butterfly and the scent of soap. I’ll make a reader one shot based on this scene which will also be somewhat an additional supplement for the story in the far future. But in the meantime, speculate.
> 
> -The punishment that Chouko gave to her middle school bully will be revealed in the future. Hint: It has to do with seasoning.
> 
> -Urara’s “weapon” is a homage to Sukeban Deka.
> 
> Notes on Art:  
> -Chouko's walkman is based off on Sony's TPS-L2 model
> 
> -The fact that Jotaro's piercings are not featured in this pic is intentional.
> 
> -There is a hidden callback to a certain JoJo character in Chouko's pic. It's small, but it's quite fashionable and not wasteful. 
> 
> Bonus Art: "The perfect solution to squash your fear of bugs; watching The Fly!" - Akahiko.
> 
> [](https://www.flickr.com/gp/164904959@N02/Gi58E4)  
> 


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